Apocalypse, Now
by DeanWinchestersGirl84
Summary: The end is nigh. The apocalypse has started and Sam and Dean must put aside their differences and save the world. But after all that has happened between them, will they ever be the same again? Sequel to 'So, This is What Love Feels Like'. R&R please!
1. You Set Him Free

**A/N: **Okay, so back by popular demand, here comes the sequel to 'So, This is What Love Feels Like'. I hope you all enjoy it.

**DISCLAIMER: **The characters in this story are not mine. I am merely playing with them. I only own Abbey/Jessi.

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**CHAPTER ONE: YOU SET HIM FREE**

Dean grabbed Sam's arm and began pulling him towards the door. Suddenly, white light overpowered them, and they had to cover their ears as an earsplitting sound rang throughout the room. Just as the noise and light became too powerful, they were suddenly out of the room, driving down a deserted street in the Impala.

"What the hell?" Dean mumbled. "What just happened?"

Sam shook his head. "I-I don't know." He wanted to talk to Dean about what he had done. Wanted to tell him how sorry he was. "Dean, I'm--" he started, only to be cut off.

"Just don't say anything, Sam," Dean ordered, not even looking at him.

Again, Sam shook his head, biting his bottom lip. A single tear fell from his eye. He had ruined it. Not only had he brought forth Hell on Earth, but he had broken the bond that he and his brother had. Staring out the window, allowing more tears to fall, Sam felt more alone than he ever thought possible.

Dean opened his cell phone, shoving it towards Sam. "Call Flare," he ordered. "Tell her to meet us."

Sam took the phone, sniffling. "Meet us where?" he asked, dialing her number.

"New York," Dean answered coldly. "Jo's Place."

With a sigh, Sam called Flare. "Flare? Get Bobby, and have him drive to New York. Dean and I will be in diner called 'Jo's Place', Bobby knows it. We want you guys to meet us there."

"Okay," Flare mumbled into the phone, glancing at Bobby. "New York. Jo's Place," she answered his silent question.

Bobby nodded. "Get in the car. I can have us there in twelve hours." Flare did as she was told, climbing into the front seat of bobby's truck. Bobby climbed into the driver's seat, starting the long drive to New York. For the most part, the drive was silent. After a while, though, Bobby turned to look at Flare. "How are you holding up, kid?" he asked, worried by how quiet she was. Maybe she was just shy, but he didn't like it.

"Not that great," Flare admitted. "You see, my sister was a seal and..." tears began to fall from her eyes as she remembered what had been done to Abbey, "...Lilith killed her. Dean's mad at me, and Sam's--" she stopped, not wanting to talk about Sam and Dean right now.

Bobby nodded. "It's okay. We'll get this all sorted out." He smiled at her. "I'm sorry about your sister."

"She was the only family I had left."

Bobby sighed. "I know how you feel," he assured her. "My family's all gone, too."

Flare closed her eyes, trying to push the image of her family dying out of her mind, but with little success. "I was only nine years old when it happened," she explained with a sigh.

Bobby shook his head, feeling terrible for her.

Sam handed the phone back to Dean, searching his face for any clue as to how he was feeling. Unfortunately, Dean managed to keep his face blank. Finally, Sam gave up, looking out the window, crying once more. He remained silent, keeping his tears to himself. He knew Dean hated to see him cry, so he didn't want to make Dean have to sit through it. If he didn't know Sam was crying, he wouldn't have to worry.

As soon as the car stopped, Sam climbed out, walking towards Jo's diner. He wiped furiously at the tears, hoping Dean wasn't watching him wipe away the evidence of his sorrow.

Flare explained her whole life story to Bobby, was easier then telling it to anyone else. Dean would just fall asleep and Sam would understand but would make a fuss and try to calm her down. She didn't want to be calm right now.

At the end of Flare's story, Bobby put a hand on her shoulder, tears in his warm eyes. "You're going to be okay, kid. Because you have us. Sam, Dean and me; we're your family now."

Flare glanced at Bobby "We are all just a bunch of misfits," she said with a small smile.

Bobby chuckled, pulling into the parking lot of Jo's Place.

Jo stood behind the counter, reading a gun magazine when Sam walked in. Instantly, he walked to the bathroom, avoiding her. Dean walked in shortly after him, smiling at Jo as he headed for her.

Jo's face lit up when she saw Dean. "Dean!" she yelled, throwing her magazine on the counter, running towards him. When she reached him, she wrapped her arms around him, holding him as tight as she could, never wanting to let him go.

"Hey," Dean said hugging her back. "How have you been?"

"Oh, you know, bored," she answered, holding him tighter.

"Jo, can't breath."

"Oh!' Jo exclaimed, pulling away, but keeping her hands on his shoulders. "Sorry. I just...I missed you!"

Flare got out of the car, hesitant. "Dean is going to kill me."

"I won't let that happen," Bobby promised, following her.

She nodded her head, walking through the doors. When she did, Dean spun, glaring at her. "I'll deal with you later," he spat.

Flare winced before quickly walking over to a table as far away as she could get from Dean and sitting down.

"Don't be such a jerk, you idjit," Bobby ordered."Hey Jo," he said, hugging her. "Where's your mom?"

Dean glared at Bobby before looking back to Jo. She pointed to the back room. "She flew in yesterday. She's waiting for you."

Bobby shook his head, walking to the back room to talk to Ellen.

Ellen turned when she heard footsteps approaching her. "Hiya, Bobby," she said with a smile and a quick hug.

Bobby returned Ellen's hug. "Ellen, Sam started the apocalypse," he explained sadly.

Ellen was silent for a moment. "Damn," she finally muttered.

Flare sat at the table, her eyes shut, sighing as she rubbed her forehead. Finally, she glanced out the window. The world already seemed different.

Sam walked out of the bathroom, seeing Flare sitting in a corner. He walked over to her, standing beside the table. "Can I sit?" he asked.

Flare glanced at Sam. "I don't know...can you?" she said dryly.

Sam sighed, figuring Flare was mad at him. He turned away and began to walk back to the bathroom. At least there no one would be mad at him. Well, unless Dean walked in.

"Sam, wait! Yes, you can sit here," she said.

Sam turned and smiled, taking a seat beside her, making sure he could still keep an eye on Dean. "He's mad at me," he explained.

"He is mad at me, too," Flare mumbled, still looking out the window.

"I mean, he's been mad at me before, but...never like this." He chuckled, wiping the tear that had escaped his eye away. "I guess I really screwed up this time, huh?"

Flare nodded. "We all did."

Jo put her hand on Dean's cheek. "Dean, what's wrong?"

"Well," Dean started, glancing over at Flare and Sam before continuing, "it's apocalypse, now."

Jo licked her lips, sucking her bottom lip into her mouth and biting it. "What are we going to do, Dean? Can we win?"

"I don't know," Dean admitted, shaking his head.

"Not the answer I was looking for, Dean."

"Whoever wins, it won't matter. We're all screwed either way."

Jo blinked. "W-What? Why?"

"Because they're all jerks. Angels, demons, all of them. Really, I've only met one angel that I can tolerate. Castiel. Well, Anna's all right, too, I guess."

"Angels are jerks?"

"Yeah. Well, except Anna and Cas."

"Wow. I thought angels were supposed to be all nice and fluffy and good."

"We are warrior of the Lord. Not kittens," Castiel corrected, appearing beside her.

"Holy crap!"

Castiel gazed at her, puzzled. "Crap is not holy." He then turned his gaze to Dean. "Lucifer is circling his vessel. We cannot allow him to become corporeal, Dean." He looked around. "Where is Sam?"

"Over there with Flare," Dean replied, trying not to laugh at the kitten comment.

Castiel grabbed Dean's elbow elbow and drug him over to the table beside Sam. There, he stood Sam up. Then, he pressed an open palm to both of their hearts.

"Ow!" Sam yelled when he felt something being engraved into his bones. He heard Dean yell something, but he was too busy tending to his own pain to care.

"They're Nokian Sigel," Castiel answered a question Sam figured Dean must have asked. "They will hide you from all angels in creation. Including Lucifer." Moments later, he did the same to Flare. He did only have two hands after all. He looked at Dean. "Who else will be in close contact with you during this fight?"

Dean eyed Bobby and Ellen as they walked out of the back room. "Uh, Bobby, Ellen and Jo," he answered, still rubbing his chest.

Castiel walked over to Bobby and Ellen, marking them first, then Jo.

"Ow!" Jo complained. "What was that?"

"Nokian Sigel."

"So, what you just branded us with it?"

"No, I carved it into your rib cage."

Jo rubbed her chest again, scrunching her face with disgust.

"Cool it Jo," Dean said calmly, continuing to rub his chest.

Ellen was quiet, still surprised that an angel was in the same room as her.

Flare looked out the window. There were no stars or moon in the sky, so it was completely dark other than the few street lights.

"I must go," Castiel sadly said, handing Dean a slip of paper. He leaned closer to Dean, whispering in his ear," Meet me here in an hour. I have a delivery for you."

Dean nodded.

Ellen shook her head to clear the fog. "What the hell just happened?" she asked.

Flare started to shiver. "Something is coming," she said quietly.


	2. The Altoel

**CHAPTER TWO: THE ALTOEL**

Sam looked at Flare. "What is it?"

"I don't know," Flare said. Suddenly, the necklace her mother gave her started to glow dimly. "Oh, no," she mumbled.

Dean glanced at Flare, seeing she had lost all the color in her face.

Ellen looked at Flare also. "You okay," she asked.

"Flare?!" Sam demanded, wanting to know what was going on.

Jo moved to stand beside her mother, taking her hand for comfort.

Flare shook her head. "Not them, not the Altoel," she mumbled, her voice full of fear.

"The what?" Dean asked.

Bobby's eyes widened. He had heard legends of the Altoel before. None of them good. Far from it.

Flare looked at Sam. She was scared. "They're looking for me," she explained quietly.

"What the hell is an Altoel?" Dean asked, angry no one was paying attention to him.

Sam wrapped his arms around Flare. I"m not going to let them get you. I'll protect you, I promise."

Jo looked at Dean, raising her hand. "I'd like to second his question. Anyone care to explain?"

Flare closed her eyes. "I thought they were a myth."

Sam cocked his head. "We hear a lot of that in our business."

Bobby shook his head. "They're warriors. Elf warriors. Nasty little creatures."

"Dark elves...tainted by lies and power," Flare started ."1000s of years ago a ruler named Taock..." Flare trailed off.

"What did he do?" Dean asked, curious now.

"H-He took what he wanted," Flare stuttered. "Killing anyone that got in the way."

"W-What happened to him?" Jo asked, curious.

"Taock was killed by an elf who controlled the elements," Bobby explained. "And when he fell, so did his army."

"Why is he back?" Sam asked. "What does he want?"

"He must want to take back what he thinks is his."

Flare looked up. "M-Me. I'm the descendent of the warrior. You must leave. They will kill you."

"We are not leaving you here, we stick together," Ellen said.

Dean nodded.

"We should leave here, though," Jo suggested. "We're like sitting ducks in here. They'll find us. We need to go somewhere safe."

Sam chuckled. "Safe. Where's safe anymore?"

Flare looked at the necklace; it was glowing brighter. "They are getting closer." "How do you know?" Dean asked  
"The necklace. It glows brighter the closer they are," Flare replied.  
"Then how do they know where you are?" Ellen asked  
Flare shook her head "I don't know."  
"Since she's the descendant of the one who killed Taock," Bobby began, "he can sense her. Can feel where she is, just from the energy she gives off."

Flare looked at the ground. "You all should leave. Get yourselves to somewhere safe. Leave me."

Dean frowned and looked at Sam, knowing there was no way he was going along with that plan.

He was right. Sam shook his head, his lips pressed in a tight line. "No, I'm not leaving you. I'm going to protect you."

Flare looked into his eyes before kissing him. "Please, Sammy, I'll only put you in danger. You and everyone else. So please, let me go, please?"

Again, he shook his head. "No. Never."

Flare looked at him. She knew she was going to be killed and there was no way she could get past that. "Sammy, I love you," she whispered before glancing at the necklace. It was glowing brighter. "I'll be okay," she lied. "Now go, please?" She kissed him one last time.

Sam stood firm. "No!" he all but yelled. "Stop telling me to go. I'm staying right here. If they want you, they're going to have to go through me to get you."

Jo smiled. It was sweet seeing Sam with someone he really cared about.

Bobby nodded his head, proud that Sam was being such a good man; even after everything that had went down the past few days.

Flare looked at Sam ad nodded. "Very well, but the rest of you must go," she said.

Dean put a hand on his brother's shoulder "Be careful," he said. "Both of you."

Ellen looked at Jo. "We will meet at the hotel five miles south," she said.

"We're not going together?" Jo asked. "Where are you going?"

Sam gave his brother a small smile. He hoped everything between them was going to work out for the best, however he had no clue. He didn't even know if he was going to make it out of this alive. He wanted to tell Dean he was sorry again. For everything, but he couldn't. He knew Dean didn't want to hear it.

Bobby hugged Sam, holding him close. "Be careful, boy," he ordered, slapping him on the back before releasing him.

"Just go with Dean. Bobby and I have to go see someone," Ellen said.

Flare looked at Bobby, then at Dean, then at Jo and Ellen. "Go, quickly," she said.

Jo's eyes widened. "Mom, no!' she protested, shaking her head furiously. "Come with us. Bobby, you too. Don't go off somewhere by yourself."

Bobby looked at Jo, heartbroken. Then, he looked to Ellen for direction.

Dean gently grabbed Jo's arm, pulling her with him.

"Jo, we will be back in an hour. Just go with Dean," Ellen ordered. Once Jo was out of the diner, Ellen looked at Bobby. "Let's get going, Bobby."

"Be careful," Flare warned.

Bobby nodded. Giving Flare and Sam one last glance, he ran off behind Ellen.

Jo allowed Dean to pull her out of the diner and into his car. "Where are we going?" she asked, looking at him as though he had the answers to everything.

"The hotel. I think it's called 'Come on Inn.'" he chuckled. "Pretty dumb, huh?"

Jo smiled. "Kind of."

Sam braced himself for a fight with the Dark Elves. Flare looked over at him and nodded. "If we don't survive this--" she started, only to be cut off by Sam.

"We're going to survive," he assured her, and himself.

Suddenly, the Dark Elves burst through the door. "Leave, human," Taock spoke to Sam. "This is no business of yours."

"See, there's where you're wrong," Sam protested. "She's my girlfriend, and you wanting to kill her kind of makes that my business, don't you think?"

Taock smiled. He turned his attention to his henchmen. "Kill the foolish human. Slowly."

Both of them nodded, each one grabbing one of Sam's arm, starting to pull him to the back room.

"Sam, no!" Flare yelled.

Taock laughed, throwing his head back to make it more dramatic.

Sam struggled against the Dark Elves, but had no luck. "Let me go!"

"Shut up, human!" the elf holding his left arm spat.

"Please!" Flare begged. "He's not a part of this!"

"I gave him a chance to leave. He chose to stay. He is a part of this," Taock argued. "Now, are you going to go quietly, or do I have to use force?" He pulled his sword out, waiting for Flare's answer.

"Let the human go, and I'll come quietly," Flare promised. "Please? As my last request."

"I can't do that," he lied. "He's probably dead by now, anyway."

"Please?" Tears started to stream down her cheeks. "I love him, and I am willing to let you take me. No strings attached."

"No," Taock laughed. "Never!" He swung the blade towards her, ready for the kill.

"King Taock," one of the elves that had taken Sam to the backroom said, jogging over to him. "The human. He got away."

Flare sighed in relief. "Stay safe, Sammy."

Taock turned and slapped the elf in the side of the head. "How dare you lose my human!" he shrieked his eyes turning bright red. He grabbed the elf's shoulder, taking a calming breath and closing his eyes. When he opened them again, they were the same baby blue they had been when he first arrived. "I'm better now," he answered with a smile. Suddenly, he turned his attention to Flare, grabbing her by the arm and dragging her out of the diner. The Dark Elf sighed in relief, knowing he had just cheated death.

Flare went along willingly as Taock dragged her to a remote location in the forest, slamming her against a tree and tying her hands behind it. He snapped his fingers, letting the other elves know he wanted the materials for the ritual. Flare sat quietly, her eyes closed, her breathing calm as she waited for Taock to start the ritual. Thoughts of Sam ran through her head; the only thing keeping her from falling apart right now.

One of the younger elves appeared before them, holding all of the items needed for the ritual. He looked at the items, taking them in his hands and raising them to the sky, chanting in an ancient language only he could understand.

Sam had been in hiding waiting for Taock to take Flare where he needed her to be. He had followed them to the forest, and there was no way he was about to let this little elf scum hurt the love of his life. He pulled out his cell phone quickly and dialed Dean's number. "Dean, they have Flare. I'm here now. We're in the forest. I might need back up. Come as soon as you get this message."

"Hello, boy," came a voice from behind Sam, and he spun, coming face to face with the second in command. Before Sam could react, he reached out and grabbed his arm, digging his nails into Sam's bicep, causing him to hiss in pain. He was drug into the forest where he saw Flare tied to a tree. That pissed him off.

He was thrown to the ground, falling on all fours. "My King, I found the boy," the elf informed Taock giddily. Sam hissed in pain as the tip of someone's steel-toed boot connected with his ribs, causing him to fall onto his side, clinging his ribs in pain. He looked up at Taock who was staring down at him, a smile on his hideous features.


	3. Ritual

**CHAPTER THREE: RITUAL**

Flare opened her eyes, seeing that they had Sam once again. Panic filled her. Taock walked over to Sam and hauled him to his feet. He leaned into him, taking a long whiff. "Mmmm...fear. I like that." Again, he turned his attention to Flare. "Tie the boy to that tree over there," he told his henchman, not looking at him. "I want him to watch his girlfriend die." A malicious smile broke onto his features.

Flare looked at Sam and tears filled her eyes. She felt so guilty. It was all her fault Sam was being hurt by these Dark Elves. They had wanted her and Sam wouldn't leave her behind because he loved her. She hung her head, feeling ashamed that she had ever brought Sam into her world.

"Hmmm..." Taock thought. "You might be useful after all, human." He pulled the ritual knife from its sheath at his hip. "I need your blood." Using the knife, Taock popped the buttons off Sam's over shirt, slicing his gray T-shirt down the middle and ripping it from his body.

Sam gulped, struggling against his restraints. _Dean!_ he screamed in his mind, knowing there was nothing he could do to get away from the blade that was being lowered to his now bare chest.

"Sammy, I'm sorry I got you sucked into this,," Flare apologized weakly.

"It's not your fault, Flare," Sam assured her. "Don't worry, we're going to get out of this. I promise."

"Sammy,...I--" She was cut off by a dark elf smacking her, causing her head to turn rapidly to the side and smack of the tree she was tied to. Blinding pain shot through her body, making her vision a little blurry.

"Dean!" Jo yelled, slapping him in the arm as he slept in the passenger seat. When he looked at her, she smiled. "You have a missed call."

"Huh, wha-" Dean said, jolting awake.

"Sam called you," Jo chuckled, amazed by how cute Dean could be even while he was sleepy.

"Oh," Dean said, grabbing his phone. He listened to the voicemail, his eyes widening.

"What did he want?" Jo asked curiously.

"Turn around Jo! _Now!_" Dean yelled.

Quickly, Jo made an illegal U-Turn. "Dean, what's wrong?" she asked, sensing the concern in his voice.

"They got Flare."

Jo stepped on the gas harder. "Where am I going, Dean?"

"The woods, ten miles back. Hurry."

"Leave her alone, you prick!" Sam yelled to the elf, furious that he had hurt Flare.

One of the elves standing close to Sam made a deep gash in his arm, causing him to clench his teeth together in pain as he hissed. "It would be wise to shut your mouth, human," the elf warned.

"The time is right, Master," the general informed, bowing before Taock.

"I know when the time is right," he assured him, annoyed. He turned his attention to the elf that cut Sam. "Did you just mar my sacrifice?" he asked, his eyes beginning to turn red.

The elf gulped, instantly regretting his last action. "I-I'm sorry," the elf stuttered, bowing as though begging for forgiveness.

Taock walked over to Sam, grabbing a bandage and wrapping it around his wound. "There, there, Sammy," he coaxed, pinching his cheeks. "You have to forgive him. He has sort of a temper."

Sam pulled his face away. "What are you doing?"

"It's a ritual. You see, I have to steal your girlfriend's power so I am strong again. Basically, I have to drain her life force and use it as my own."

"If you hurt her, I swear to God, I'll kill you!" Sam threatened.

Taock smiled. "Don't worry, Sammy. You'll be dead long before I kill her."

The general looked at Taock. "We must start it now. Her power is at it's greatest in this hour."

Taock's hand shot out, wrapping around the general's chubby throat. "Do not tell me what I have to do!" he screamed, his eyes fiery red. "I will start the ritual when I start the ritual. Until then, you will sit back and shut your fat trap!" He turned back to Sam, his eyes becoming blue once again. "I'm sorry for the general's rudeness. Please forgive him." He turned back to the general. "Apologize to Sammy for your incompetence."

"I am sorry," the general apologized, bowing to Sam.

Sam looked at the general, confused. "It's...okay."

Taock smiled, slapping his hands over Sam's shoulders. "I have to start the ritual, now." He pulled the knife close to Sam's cheek, running the blade down his face lightly. "I may have lied to you, Sammy."

"What?"

"The ritual, it requires your blood. All of your blood, but in small quantities at a time." He stuck the knife in Sam's abdomen, collecting the blood in the gauntlet required for the ritual. Taking the gauntlet and walking over to Flare, he dipped his finer in Sam's blood, drawing lines on her forehead and cheeks with Sam's blood. "You will be alive to see Flare die." Dipping his whole hand in the blood, he touched Flare's chest, Sam's blood staining her body as he chanted.

Jo slammed on the breaks, jumping out of the car. "Sam! I don't see Sam!"

"Dammit!" Dean yelled.

Tears began to fill Jo's eyes. "Dean, where's Sam? You said he would be here waiting! Where the hell is Sam?!"

Dean started to pace. "He must have went in and tried to save her."

"So, what does that mean? Do they have him?" Jo asked, tears now falling freely. Dean looked at Jo and nodded. Jo shook her head. "Dean, we have to help him. He'll die if we don't."

Flare gasped for air. It felt like her heart was being crushed, then her lungs, then...everywhere. She looked over at Sam before throwing her head back. She tried to scream., but nothing came out. Her voice just wouldn't work.

"Flare!" Sam yelled, struggling once again. "Dammit! Stop it! Stop it, you're killing her!"

The flesh under Taock's hand began to glow faintly, as did the the lines of Sam's blood on her cheeks and forehead. Taock gasped as he began to grow stronger. All Sam could do was stand and watch, tears falling down his face. Flare's eyelids began to feel heavy. She was dying. Her eyes closed, her breathing becoming shallow.

Taock finally pulled his hand away. He needed more blood. Grabbing the knife that was still embedded in Sam's gut, he thrust it upward, catching Sam's blood in the gauntlet once again. He walked back over to Flare, repeating his process. Flare closed her eyes more tightly, her face becoming pale as her life force was drained.

Suddenly, Flare heard something. "Flare?" came a familiar voice. "Flare, honey, hold on. Help is on the way."

Dean opened the Impala's trunk angrily and handed Jo a gun, grabbing one for himself as well.

As they walked farther into the forest, Jo became impatient. "I don't see him, Dean," Jo said, breaking the silence. "Where is he?"

"Shhh," Dean ordered, thinking he heard screams. Jo looked at him, pouting.

Flare was shocked. "M-Mom?" she asked. "Mom, what's going on?"

"You're dreaming, sweetie," her mother answered with a soft smile. "Oh, honey, I've missed you so much. Look at how you've grown." She hugged her, holding her tightly. "You've grown up to be such an amazing woman." She pulled away, touching her cheek lightly. "The way you took care of your sister...I'm so proud of you, Flare."

"I-I failed. She died. Twice. And I somewhat caused the end of the world." Tears fell from her eyes as she explained her failure to her mother. "You shouldn't be proud of me."

Her mother wiped the tears away from her eyes. "Honey, you didn't fail. Abbey is in a better place, now. And you two will see each other again. But not right now." She looked into Flare's eyes. "I need you to wake up, now. Open your eyes and look at Sam. And no matter what happens, don't take you're eyes off of him."

"Mom, I love you." Flare cried. "Please don't leave."

Her mother smiled. "I love you, too. But I have to go now. Your sister and father are waiting for me." She blew her a kiss and was gone.

Sam gasped, trying to stay conscious. He was losing a lot of blood. "Leave...her...alone," he spoke, his words slurred. Taock, however didn't listen.

Flare's eyes suddenly shot open, and she did what her mother had ordered and looked at Sam. She never wanted to take her eyes off of him. Tears blurred her vision as she saw him slipping away. God, he was losing so much blood.

Taock walked back over to Sam. "It's almost over, Sammy." He grabbed the knife and pulled it out of Sam's abdomen. Sam groaned in pain. Suddenly, Taock pushed his fingers into Sam's wound, and Sam screamed in pain. He closed his eyes, wishing the pain would go away. And then, suddenly, it did.

"Get the Hell away from my brother, you son of a bitch!" Dean ordered, running at Taock, using his shoulder to knock him away from Sam. Dean fell down, too, the force knocking his shoulder out of place. "Fuck!" he groaned in pain as he hauled himself over Taock, repeatedly punching him in the nose. Blood squirted everywhere, but Dean didn't stop. This bastard was going to pay for what he did to Sammy.

"D-Dean," Flare said weakly, "don't kill him. I'll die, too." Reluctantly, Dean climbed off of him, keeping his foot pressed to this jugular so he didn't try anything.

Jo ran over to Sam, touching his shoulders and pushing him back into the tree to get a better look at his wound. "Oh, God, Sam? Are you all right?"

Sam looked up at her, heavy-lidded. "Bleeding...a lot. Help...stop."

Jo looked at Dean. "Give me your shirt," she ordered.

Dean tossed her his over shirt, feeling a slight pang of panic wash through him as he watched Sam's eyelids flutter closed. "How the hell do I stop him, then?!" Dean demanded.

Jo pressed Dean's light colored shirt to Sam's wound, staining it with blood. Sam groaned as Jo applied pressure to the gash. "Dean, he needs to get to a hospital. He's losing too much blood."

Dean tossed Jo the keys to the Impala. "Go!"

"Finish the ritual. Take his life force and g-give it to me," Flare explained weakly. "H-hurry."

"I don't know what to do," Dean said, looking at Taock. He wanted to punch the living hell out of him again for hurting his family. But he restrained himself.

"You saw what he was doing to me and Sam. "Do the same to him. That will reverse it."

Dean did what Flare told him to. When he was finished, he took the knife Taock had been using on Sam and cut the ropes that were binding her to the tree. "Are you okay?"

Flare looked at Dean weakly. "Y-You s-saved me. I-I thought you h-hated m-me."

"I don't hate you, Flare. I was just mad."

Flare hugged him in a sisterly manner. "Thanks, Dean."

Jo helped Sam walk to the Impala, climbing in and driving in the direction of the hospital. She burst

through the doors, Sam leaning on her for support. "Help me! Please, somebody! Help!"

A female nurse ran over to them. "What happened?"

"H-He was attacked. Please, help him," Jo begged.

The nurse nodded before she grabbed a gurney. With the help of Jo, she got Sam on it, pushing it into room 12, the doctor following.

Jo looked at the nurse who came out of Sam's room moments later. "Is he going to be okay?" she asked, her voice heavy with worry.

"He lost a lot of blood. We are giving him IVs now that will stabilize him for the time being," the nurse explained. "The doctor will know more."

Jo nodded, glad that Sam was going to be okay.


	4. Jessi

**CHAPTER FOUR: JESSI**

Dean wrapped his arms around Flare, holding her how he had done to Sam so many times. She was his family now, too, and there was no way he was going to let his family fall apart. It was all he had left. Pulling away, his phone suddenly rang. "Hello?"

"Dean?" Jo answered. "I got Sam to the hospital. He lost a lot of blood, and he might need a transfusion." She sighed. "How fast can you get here? They want to test your blood and see if you can help Sam."

"I can be there in ten minutes." Dean hung up his phone and looked at Flare. "We need to get to the hospital. Sammy needs a blood transfusion and they need to test my blood."

Weakly, Flare stood. If Dean had not been there to catch her, she would have fallen back down. Knowing they had to walk to the hospital because Jo had the Impala, Dean picked Flare up and carried her.

Jo quickly turned towards the doors when she heard them open, seeing Dean and Flare. "Dean," she sighed, happy to see him. She had been going out of her mind with worry. Worrying about Sam, worrying about Flare. Worrying whether or not Dean was going to be able to get over here with Flare being in her current condition. All of it was just too much.

Gently, Dean put Flare down, standing close in case she needed him as support to help her stand. "Where's Sammy?"

"Um,...he's in room 12," Jo answered, helping Flare to a seat. "The doctor's over there by the desk. He wants to talk to you."

Dean nodded, walking over to the doctor. "I'm the brother of the man in room 12," he said calmly.

"Ah, yes, Mr. Winchester. I need to take a sample of your blood, if you will permit, of course, so that I can see if you and your brother have the same blood type. And if you do, we may proceed to the next step."

Flare glanced at Jo. "H-How bad did he look?" she asked, the tears threatening to fall.

Jo looked away, not wanting to meet Flare's gaze. "He looked...bad." A tear fell from her eye.

"And if I don't have the same blood type?" Dean asked. "Then what do we do?"

"Then you can test mine," Flare answered, determined to help Sam.

The doctor looked at Flare. "Yes, I will test your blood as well. And your friend over there. But if no one has the same blood as he does--" he trailed off. "well, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it." With a smile, he led Dean Flare and Jo into a secluded room where a nurse took a sample of each of their blood. Then, all they could do was wait.

Dean hated waiting. He began to pace around the room, wondering what the hell was taking so long.

"If only he hadn't tried to save me," Flare whispered, her voice dripping with guilt.

"Don't say that!" Dean ordered, spinning so he was facing her, pointing a warning finger in her direction.

"Guys, don't start. Not here. Not now," Jo ordered, rolling her eyes.

Suddenly, the doctor walked in. He looked tired, and upset. "Mr. Winchester, could I speak to you alone for a minute?" he asked, motioning for Dean to follow him outside.

Dean nodded, following the doctor outside. "So, what's the news, Doc?"

The doctor looked at Dean, sadness in his eyes. "Mr. Winchester, I'm sorry. None of you are matches. Unfortunately, your brother has a very rare blood type. And we don't have any of the same type in stock." The doctor looked down at his charts. "Without it, I'm afraid your brother will not make it. He has maybe days before he is too weak to go on. He will be taken over in a comatose state, and then it will be merely hours before his inevitable death." He looked at Dean once again. "I'm very sorry."

Dean was silent for a long moment as the realization set in that he might not be able to save his brother. Panic filled him as he thought that Sam was going to die. No. There was no way he was going to let that happen. He was going to find a way to save Sam. He had to. It was his job. Look after his pain in the ass little brother. No matter what. Even if it meant he would have to make another deal, he was going to take care of him.

He nodded to the doctor, letting him know he understood and accepted his apology. Flare was sitting next to Sam, holding his hand. "Well?" she asked, seeing that Dean was upset. He didn't have to answer, just look. She could tell the news was not good. "No," she sobbed, shaking her head.

Jo had also got the memo. "No! There-There has to be something else we can do. What-What about...Castiel? He can heal Sam, right?"

Dean shook his head. "I don't know."

"Well, you could at least ask him, right?" Suddenly, Dean cell phone rang, causing Jo to jump a little.

"Yeah?" Dean answered.

"Dean?" Castiel spoke. "I heard of the unfortunate events that have happened to Sam. Where are you?"

"North Hospital."

Before Dean even hung up the phone, Castiel was there. He looked down at Sam before looking at Dean. "We need to talk."

Jo wiped at her tears, hating that she was showing her emotions. She knew this must be killing Dean, which only made her cry harder; she couldn't stand it when Dean looked so broken. Flare walked over to Jo and put a hand on her shoulder. She felt a sisterly bond with this girl. Jo touched Flare's hand and smiled, happy that she had someone to share her grief with.

Slowly, Flare sat next to Jo, keeping her eyes on Sam. "How is he?" Jo asked, thinking Flare would have a better idea since she knew him better.

"He's strong," Flare said. "But, right now, I'm not so sure he'll pull through this."

Dean followed Castiel out of the room. "What's going on, Cas?"

"Dean, I know what your brother needs. A girl...she lives not too far from here, in Grand View. She shares the rare blood that Sam has. She is a vessel, so you must hurry before she is taken over by the angel that needs her. Her name is Jessi. Jessi Dallas. Go now."

Dean nodded. "Thanks, Cas." Castiel gave him a half smile before he disappeared. Dean walked back into the room. "I have to go to Grand View."

Jo stood, surprised by Dean's words. "What? Why? What's in Grand View?"

"There's a girl there with Sam's blood type. She can help him."

Flare stood, too. "I'll go. You should stay here with Sam."

"No, Dean, you should go. More sympathy from the girl. If she knows your brother's dying she'll be more willing to give him her blood." Jo grabbed her jacket. "I'll go with Dean, you stay with Sam. Call us if anything changes." With a quick hug, she grabbed Dean's elbow and led him out of the room.

Dean started driving the second Jo climbed into the Impala, not even waiting for her to close the door. He was on a time schedule. "So, Castiel gave you the tip about this girl?" Jo asked, desperate to make conversation during the thirty minutes they would be in the car together.

"Yeah," Dean answered. "He had to use the cell phone to find us."

"Oh, because of those thingys he carved into us?" Jo sighed as they pulled into the driveway of the girl who was going to either save Sam's life or kill him. The thirty minute drive had taken them only ten with Dean behind the wheel. "Dean," she breathed, grabbing his arm before he could get out of the car. "What if she doesn't help?"

Dean shook his head. "Don't say that."

"I'm sorry, Dean, but you have to accept that it's a possibility." Seeing the hurt in Dean's eyes, Jo rolled her eyes. "What the hell?" she asked herself out loud, grabbing Dean's jacket and pulling him into her, their lips connecting in a hard kiss.

Dean was surprised when Jo kissed him, but it soon passed. He kissed her back, wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. Jo moved her arms to wrap around Dean's neck, grabbing a fistful of his short cropped hair. Dean didn't even hear his phone ring as he continued kissing Jo, tangling his tongue with hers as they fought for control.

Flare had pulled a chair closer to Sam's bed and was now holding his hand in hers again. Sam suddenly opened his eyes, breathing heavily. "Dean?' he asked, looking around the room for his brother.

Flare looked up at Sam. "S-Sammy?" she asked quietly, brushing some hair away from his face. "You should try not to talk. Save your energy."

"Flare?" he asked, wincing as he turned to look at her. "Where's Dean? I need to talk to Dean." He looked at Flare. "I'm dying. I can feel it. And I have to apologize to my brother." Sam drew in a ragged breath which caused the wound in his stomach to scream with pain. "Please, tell Dean I want...to see him." He lightly stroked Flare's cheek.

Tears rolled down Flare's cheek "Your not gonna die, Sammy. Your not! I can't live with out you!"

"I can feel it, Flare. Please, I have to tell Dean how sorry I am."

"I'll call him," Flare said, pulling out her cell phone and dialing Dean's number.

Jo heard Dean's phone. "Mmmm..." she moaned pulling away. "Dean, your phone. It could be Flare."

Dean frowned and answered the phone. "Yeah?"

"Sam is awake. H-He wants to talk to you," Flare said before handing Sam the phone.

Sam took the phone, feeling weak. "Dean, I--" Suddenly, Sam passed out, Flare's phone falling from his hand.

"Sam? Sammy, wake up, please!" Flare begged, shaking him slightly.

"Sammy?" Dean asked, hearing no reply from the other end. Dammit! Again, he became panicked. "Sammy?! Answer me!" Suddenly, the phone went dead. He looked over at Jo, shoving his phone into his pocket and jumping out of the car. "We need to go now! We're running out of time."

Jo quickly followed Dean, hearing the shouts that were coming from inside the house. She smiled as she began to get the feeling this was going to be easy. She knew how it was when girls fought with their mother. They wanted to get away. And Jo and Dean just became this girl's escape.

"I hate it here!" the girl yelled, storming up the stairs. "You don't ever take my feelings into consideration!"

"Well, maybe I would if you didn't have such bad taste," her mother argued, following her to her bedroom.

"There is nothing wrong with William! He is kind and caring and a good man!"

"And he's also 25! You're seventeen!"

"Age is just a number, mother!"

Her mother huffed. "Not in my opinion. You are not to see him again."

"You're not fair! I hate you!" the girl screamed, slamming the door in her mother's face.

Jo knocked on the door, trying to hide her smile. A tall woman answered shortly after. "Yes?"

"Hi," Jo answered. "I'm looking for Jessi. Is she home."

Suddenly, a petite brunette came down the stairs. "Yes?" she asked, her British accent making Jo a little jealous.

"Hi, I'm Jo Harvelle. My friend and I would like to talk to you for a minute. I mean, if that's okay."

Jessi looked at Dean and nodded, grabbing her leather jacket and walking onto the porch, slamming the door behind her. "What's this about?"

"It's about my brother," Dean answered. "You don't know, but...you can help him."

Jessi looked at Dean; she could see the hurt in his eyes. "What's wrong with him?" She crossed her arms over her chest, waiting for Dean to answer.

"He was attacked, and he lost a lot of blood. The hospital doesn't have his blood type in stock, because it's really rare."

"So, how can I help?"

"You're a match. I found you in the hospital files. I just wanted to come over and ask you, please, help my brother."

"Of course I'll help him," Jessi answered, touching Dean's arm. "Anything to get out of this house." She looked at the Impala. "Is that your car?" She began walking towards it. "Sweet ride." She climbed into the passenger seat, waiting for Dean and Jo to get in.

Jo glared at her. "That's my seat," she grit out, looking at Dean in disapproval, willing him to tell her to move when they got close enough to the car.

"Jo, not now," Dean ordered. "Just sit in the back."

Jo looked at him, annoyed. "Dean, I am not sitting in the back of that Impala."

Dean shook his head. "Fine." He walked over to the girl, shaking his head, clearly annoyed. "Hey, could you sit in back? Jo will kill me if you don't."

"Why?" she asked, crossing her arms. "She can sit in the back. It won't kill her."

"She gets car sick," Dean lied.

Jessi rolled her eyes. "Fine," she answered, climbing into the back seat through the passenger seat.

Jo smiled at Dean, happy she had gotten her way.


	5. Saving Sammy

**CHAPTER FIVE: SAVING SAMMY**

Sam didn't know how, but he was suddenly out of the hospital and standing about ten feet from Dean. He walked closer to him, seeing how hurt his brother was. "Dean, can you see me? Dean? Dean?!" Sam reached out, his hand going through Dean's arm. Quickly, he pulled his arm back. "Dean? What's wrong with me?" When Dean didn't answer, Sam pressed his body so close there was no space between them. "Dean, please, tell me you know I'm here," Sam whispered. "Dean!"

Dean got into the driver's seat of the Impala, smiling as the engine roared to life.

A dark brown haired girl walking down the street, looked over at the two men. The taller one was talking but it seemed as if the other did not see or hear him. Great. "Hey," she whispered, "over here."

Sam looked at the girl, then looked around the street. "Can-Can you see me?" he asked, walking closer to her.

She nodded. "Yeah."

"Am-Am I dead?"

Jo looked down the street, seeing a girl standing in the middle of the road, talking to herself. "Dean," she started, pointing to the girl. "What is she doing?"

Dean slowed the car to a stop before he rolled down the window. "Hey, you okay?" he asked.

"Oh, yeah, just trying to go over the directions my friend told me. I forgot to wright them down," the girl replied.

"Oh, okay, then." Dean rolled up the window and drove off.

The girl sighed before turning her attention back to Sam. "Do you remember dying?"

Sam looked at Dean as he spoke to the girl. "Dean! Dean, don't go!" he begged, trying desperately to get his brother's attention. Once Dean was gone, Sam turned his attention back to the girl. He shook his head. "No," he replied, tears blurring his vision. "I can't be dead. I have to talk to my brother. I have to apologize to him."

"I can help you with that. What's your name?"

"S-Sam."

"Hi, Sam. My name is Sara." She pulled out her cell phone. "What's your brother's number?"

Sam took a deep breath, trying to remember what Dean's most recent number was. "Um...try (866)907-3235. I think that's the one he has right now."

As Sam recited the number, she nodded, dialing it and pressing the SEND button. She waited for him to answer. It rang quite a few times before he picked up, which made her think she wasn't going to get a hold of him. Relief washed over her when he picked up the phone. "Hi. Dean, right? Um, you don't know me, but I'm with your brother right now. And he wants to talk to you."

"You're at the hospital with my brother?" Dean asked, confused. "Why? Who is this?"

"I'm not at the hospital," she explained, looking at Sam. "You're brother is in Grand View." She rolled her eyes. "Look, this is hard to explain over the phone. Could you meet me at the coffee shop, please?"

"Listen, sweetheart, my brother is in the hospital. He needs a blood transfusion in the next twelve hours or he's going to die. Now, I don't who you think you're playing, but it's not going to work on me."

"I'm telling the truth." She looked at Sam, holding the phone away from her mouth so Dean couldn't hear her. "What can I say to make him believe me?"

Sam closed his eyes thinking of something that would make Dean remember. "Tell him that when he was little, he carried me out of my room while it was burning. And from that day on, he promised he would protect me and never let anything happen to me."

Speaking into the phone again, she paraphrased what Sam was saying in a rushed tone. "When you were little, you carried your brother out of his room when it was burning. You-You made a promise...that you would protect him...no matter what."

Dean's breath caught in his throat. "Who is this?"

"My name is Sara Min. Please, meet me at the coffee shop."

"Fine. I'll be there in five minutes." Dean turned the car around quickly, causing Jo and Jessi to roll in their seats.

"Dean, what are you doing?!" Jo demnaded.

"I have to go to the coffee shop."

"Coffee? You want coffee now?!"

"I have to meet someone." He pulled into the lot, getting out of the car and leaving the keys. "Get her to the hospital. Sammy needs her." Jo nodded and took off as Dean walked into the shop.

Sara was sitting at a table in the far corner, talking to Sam. "What happened to you?" she asked quietly.

"I don't know," Sam replied. "I remember that I was being used as a ritual sacrifice, and then everything's a blank." He shook his head, wanting this nightmare to be over. "I'm dreaming, I have to be." He looked around the coffee shop, then, his spirits rising once he saw his brother. "Dean!" he said happily, smiling broadly, showing his dimples.

Dean looked her up and down, curious as to what she was playing at. He would figure it out eventually. Yep, it was just a matter of time. "I'm Dean. You said you were talking to my brother?" He rose his arms and spread them out before him, wide. "I don't see him."

"I see his spirit," Sara replied. "And he wants to say a few things to you."

Dean nodded, biting the inside of his lip. "His spirit?" he asked in disbelief. "See, now I know you're lying. My brother's not dead. Therefore, you can't see his spirit. It's in his body!"

Sam sighed, knowing Dean was hard-headed and wouldn't believe her. "Tell him I'm sorry about everything. That I didn't mean for it to happen." A tear rolled down his cheek. "Tell him thanks, for killing Ruby. And thanks for saving me."

"He said he is sorry...about everything. He said thanks for killing Ruby, and thanks for saving him."

Dean shook his head, tears forming behind his eyes. He looked up at her, licking his suddenly, too dry lips. "So, are you telling me my brother's dead?" he asked, dreading the answer but knowing he needed to hear it.

"He doesn't remember dying, so I'm not sure."

Dean shook his head,feeling hopeful. "Uh, do they usually remember dying?"

"Most of the time," Sara replied before she turned to Sam. "What is the last thing you remember?"

Sam sighed, frustrated. "I already told you. I was being used as a ritual sacrifice and then everything's blank."

Sara nodded. "Well, do you see a light anywhere?"

Sam looked around, feeling a little silly. "No. I don't see anything," he replied. He closed his eyes and was suddenly thrust back into his body.

Sara looked around, not seeing Sam anywhere. "I think your brother is okay," she said with a smile.

Dean smiled. "I have to get to the hospital. I have to see Sammy." With that, he ran out of the shop, running as fast as he could to the hospital.

Back at the hospital, Sam gasped, breathing heavily, the gash in his stomach screaming at him to calm down.

Flare hugged him gently. "You're okay!"

Sam groaned when Flare hugged him. Although it was gentle, it hurt. He didn't understand what was happening, but he was glad he was back in his body.

Flare pulled back. "Sorry," she whispered, placing her hand over his.

Meanwhile, Jo walked up to the nurse on duty. "Hi. The doctor told me that I could talk to you about the patient in room 12. He needs a transfusion, and this..." she pointed to Jessi, "...is his donor." The nurse looked at them. "We have to test her blood."

"Go ahead," Jo answered, lightly pushing Jessi towards her.

Jessi gave her arm to the nurse, smiling. "Test away."

The nurse took some blood and went into the back room.

"How are you feeling, hon?" Flare asked gently.

Sam smiled and gave a small chuckle. "I feel tired. And weak. I ache." He looked at Flare. "Did they find the donor?"

Flare nodded, brushing the hair away from his face. "I love you. So don't die on me, okay?"

Sam smiled, stroking her cheek lovingly. "If Dean pulls through with this donor, I promise I won't."

Flare kissed Sam's forehead. "When this is all over, we need to go get a vacation."

Sam chuckled. "Yeah, right. When this is over." He bit his bottom lip, gently readjusting himself on the bed. "I'm so tired," he said groggily.

"Sammy, don't fall asleep, okay? Stay awake, with me."

"Can't...stay awake. Want sleep. Will...see you when I wake up. Love you." Sam closed his eyes, drifting to sleep.

"Just hang on Sammy, okay?" she whispered into his ear. "Just hang on."

Jo waited in the waiting room with Jessi. She didn't know what would come first; Dean or the results.

"Where the hell are the results!" Jo demanded, causing Jessi to jump at her outburst.

Just then, the nurse came out. "She has the right blood type."

"Good. Can you give Sam that transfusion, now so he doesn't die?!" she asked, a little annoyed.

The nurse nodded, walking Jessi to the operating room.

Finally, Dean rushed in, running right into Sam's doctor.

"Mr. Winchester!" the doctor asked, surprised as he bent down to pick up the clipboard he had dropped when Dean ran into him. "What are you doing?"

"Sorry, we found a donor."

"Yes, I know. Miss King and Sam have gone through the surgery and are in recovery as we speak." The doctor smiled, glad that he could help.

Once the doctor left, Castiel showed up. "It is time. The vessel must be taken now."

Dean jumped, not expecting Cas to show up. "Wait, what?"

"The vessel. Her host must take her now."

Once the doctors brought Sam back from the Operating Room, Flare was sitting in the recovery room with him. She looked up at Sam as he began to come to. "Hey, hon."

Suddenly, there was a while light in Jessi's room, and then a power surge as she was entered by her host.

Sam blinked rapidly. "What the hell was that?"

Flare stood. "I don't know," she mumbled.

Dean blinked a few times "What the--?"

"The vessel has been entered," Castiel explained to Dean, his facial expression hard.

"Okay, so who is this new angel?"

Castiel looked at Dean with sad eyes. " A friend of yours," he replied sadly.


	6. Unlucky In Love

**CHAPTER SIX: UNLUCKY IN LOVE**

Sam smiled at her. Just when he thought he couldn't possibly love her more, she proved him wrong.

Flare smiled. "What is it?"

"Just when I thought I couldn't love you anymore, you prove me wrong," he chuckled.

Flare kissed Sam gently on the lips.

Sam leaned into her kiss, gently pushing his tongue between her lips.

"Sammy, I love you so much," Flare whispered.

Sam smiled. "I love you, too."

"It's amazing you survived, Sammy," Flare said. "And I'm go glad you did."

"Who?" Dean asked, confused.

Castiel sighed. "I cannot tell you, Dean," he said. "You will have to find out for yourself." He looked around the room as though he was being watched. "I must go. But first, I need something from you."

"Okay, shoot," Dean said, crossing his arms.

"Dean, I need to find God. He is here...on Earth. And you have the amulet that I need to get the job done."

"What, no."

Castiel looked at Dean, confused. "No, what, Dean? I didn't even tell you what I wanted."

"Sorry, gut reaction."

Castiel straightened, pulling to his full height. "I need to use that necklace that you wear everywhere. It will assist me in finding our father."

"See? That's why I said no."

"Give it to me, Dean," Castiel ordered, his voice stern.

Reluctantly, Dean pulled the amulet over his head, handing it to Castiel. "Just...don't lose it."

Castiel gave Dean a look that an annoyed parent may give their child when they are acting up before he disappeared.

Jessi sat up in the bed, looking at her hands and playing with her hair. Everything was so new to her. This wasn't her body; at least not the one she had been used to. She stood slowly, pulling the wires off of her body. There was one thing on her mind: Find Flare.

Flare looked into Sam's loving eyes. "You okay?" she asked again, just making sure he was. "Because if I lose you--"

Sam cut her off with another kiss. He would never tire of kissing her.

Suddenly, the door burst open and Jessi entered. She walked straight up to Flare and hugged her, holding her tightly.

Flare knit her eyebrows in confusion. "Um...Jessi? Why are you hugging me?"

"I missed you," she replied, pulling away. "It's me, Flare, Abbey."

Flare looked into her eyes. "S-Sissy?"

She smiled. "I'm here."

Flare hugged her sister, crying. "Abbey, I missed you so much."

Dean walked into the room. He glanced over at Flare and Jessi. "What's going on?"

Sam looked at his big brother, smiling. "It's Abbey. She's in Jessi."

"Abbey?" Dean whispered. Flare stepped back so Dean could see her. He walked over and hugged her, holding her tightly as if he thought she was going to disappear and all of this had just been a dream.

Abbey closed her eyes, wanting to cry, but finding it impossible to do so. "I missed you, too, Dean," she whispered, tightening her grip on Dean.

Suddenly, Jo walked into the room, surprised by how jealous she was that Dean was hugging Jessi. "Is this a private party or can anyone join in?" she asked, leaning against the door frame.

Flare smiled. "Meet my sister, Abbey," she said, motioning towards Jessi. As she did, Dean pulled away from the hug, looking at the ground.

Jo looked at Flare as though she were insane. "Flare, um...that's Jessi. You know, Jessi...we brought her here to give Sam that transfusion that he needed. Yeah, Jessi." She walked over to Dean, touching his face, forcing him to look into her eyes. "What's wrong, honey, you look pale."

Abbey looked at Jo, and then to Flare. _Honey?_she mouthed, anger rising within her.

Dean made sure he kept his eyes locked on the ground as Jo spoke to him. Flare looked back at Sam, worried. "This is not going to end well," she whispered, more to herself than anyone.

Jo forced Dean to look back up at her. "Dean...what's wrong. You don't look good at all. Are you coming down with something?"

Jessi clenched and unclenched her fist, counting to ten under her breath. She didn't like the fact that Jo was so close to her man.

Dean looked from Jo to Abbey. "Well, Abbey and I were...a thing. She died before _all_ Hell broke loose, and then...you came into the picture." He looked at Flare and Sam, mouthing, _Help me!_

"Oh," Jo answered. "Well, Abbey's an angel, now, so she's kind of off the market, and that means you're free." She leaned in closer to him, pressing her body against his so she could whisper in his ear. "Do you want me to kiss you again? Because I will." Before she pulled away, she nipped the top of his ear in a playful manner.

Jessi about lost it watching Jo throw herself at Dean. She was still here. Didn't Jo care about that?

Sam smiled before laughing at his brother. He shook his head 'no', thinking this was just too funny to stop.

Flare sighed. "I better stop this before they kill each other. Or Dean."

"Jo, Abbey, uh--" Dean stumbled as he tried to get words out. "I, um--"

"You what?!" the girls asked in unison.

Sam touched Flare's arm, stopping her. "Wait. Let's just see how this plays out."

Dean shrugged, trying to maintain his cool. _These girls are scarier than anything I've ever gone up against. Damn I'm in trouble,_ he thought. "I uh, like you both."

Flare smirked, which quickly turned into a wince when she heard Dean's answer. "Ouch, wrong thing to say," she whispered.

Jessi crossed her arms over her chest as did Jo and they just stared at him. Sam couldn't help but laugh. Quickly, Flare slapped her hand over his mouth, stifling his laughter. They didn't need to be in this one.

"Please don't kill me!" He turned to Abbey. "I thought you were dead." He then turned to Jo. "I needed someone...and Jo was there for me." He turned back to Abbey "I love you both, but like Jo said, your an Angel. I don't really know how that happened, but you are."

"So, what? You're breaking up with me?!" Jessi asked, shocked.

Suddenly, Castiel appeared. He looked from Dean to Jessi then back to Jessi. "I sensed distress. What is the matter?"

Jessi glared at Dean before she grabbed a fistful of Castiel's hair and pulled him into a hard kiss. When she let him go, he could do nothing but stare. He was so confused.

Dean looked at her, then at Castiel, before he pulled Jo into a heated kiss. She gladly reacted, parting her lips so Dean's tongue could slip inside her mouth.

"That's it," Flare said shaking her head. Once Dean had ended the kiss, she grabbed Abbey and Jo by the hair, walking out of the room with them. "You two are acting like four year olds!"

Castiel looked at Dean. "I am confused about what just happened."

"Dude, she just kissed you," he explained, surprised by how dense Castiel could be at times.

Cas cocked his head to the side. "Why?"

"To make me jealous. Or because she likes you." He was angry that he didn't know the real reason. No, not angry, jealous.

Castiel placed a hand on Dean's shoulder. "If she does like me, the feeling is not mutual. You don't have to worry about there being an...us."

Dean frowned. "Sure."

"Well?! Say something!" Flare yelled.

"She started it!" Jessi yelled, pointing a finger at Jo who merely rolled her eyes.

"Abigail, your _not_ a little girl. And Jo, neither are you," she said, crossing her arms. "Now, look there are two options, here."

"Yeah," Jessi answered. "A, Jo could back down willingly, or B, I could make her back down."

"No. Abbey, since you are an Angel, you could be with him in dreams. And Jo could be with him when he is awake. Or, you both drop it and neither of you have him."

"I'm not sharing Dean!" Jo protested. "I'm going to have him when he's sleeping and when he's awake. Get over it, _Angelica_."

Flare smacked them both. "Look, why are you two being jerks to each other? He is just a man."

"He's not just _a_ man," Jo argued. "He's _the _man."

Flare rolled her eyes. What the hell did they see in him? "I just got my damn life force sucked out then put back in. I don't have to take this shit," she said, walking back into Sam's room.

Sam looked at Dean and smiled. "Quite the predicament you're in brother."

Dean bit his lip. "How can you pick one girl? It's so hard."

Sam rolled his eyes. "It's not hard, Dean. I love Flare and I could never think about being with another woman."

Dean was going to say something about Ruby, but bit his tongue, holding the comment back. "But what if I like them both?"

Sam sighed. "I don't know, Dean. I never had to deal with anything like that."

"Gah, your no help!" Dean mumbled

Flare came in and shut the door behind her, leaving Abbey and Jo in the hall. "Dude, your screwed," she said with a smirk.

"Damn," Dean sighed.

Sam scooted to a seated position on his bed. "Come on, Dean. Quit feeling sorry for yourself and go sign me out. The longer I'm in here the higher our chances are of being caught."

"Is there a back way out?" Dean asked.

"Nope," Flare said before she pushed him out of the room and quickly shut the door. She then walked over to Sam and sat next to him on the bed.

Sam wrapped his arms around Flare. He sighed. "He's such a baby."

Flare lay her head on his shoulder and stayed silent for a moment. "Maybe when you get better, we should go out on a real date. Just you and me."

Sam smiled. "Yeah right. A real date. In the middle of the apocalypse? I don't think that's possible."

"Nothing is impossible," Flare assured him.

Sam smiled, slightly. Even if he didn't believe her, the way she said it was sweet.

Flare placed her hand on Sam's cheek and smiled. "This will all work out, Sammy."

Sam sighed. "I hope so." He tightened his grip around Flare's waist, pulling her in closer to him, planting a soft kiss on her forehead.

Jo stood alone in the lobby, Jessi having suddenly disappeared in the middle of their fight. She smiled when she saw Dean. "Dean, how's Sam?"

"He's fine," Dean answered. "He really wants to get out of here."

"Good," Jo sighed, walking with Dean to the reception desk. "Once we're out of here, he can start hunting again, then, right?"

"I guess."

"Good, because Bobby called," Jo informed. "Rufus needs help. He's in Riverpass, Colorado and there's a demon infestation. He wants us to go check it out."

"Riverpass, huh?" Dean nodded. "Okay."

"Yeah." Jo smiled. "Well, you go sign Sam out. I'm going to go to the bathroom and wash my hands and I'll meet you in the Impala." As she walked off towards the bathroom, she gave Dean's ass a hard smack, smiling to herself.

Dean shook his head before walking to the front desk. "Can I have the papers to sign my brother out, last name Winchester."

The nurse smiled at Dean, obviously having seen what Jo had done to him. She handed him the papers, trying to hold back her laughter.

Dean grabbed the papers from her hand, walking over to one of the chairs and began filling them out.

"Can I tell you something, Sammy?" Flare asked, still resting her head on his chest.

"You can tell me anything," Sam replied. "You know that."

Flare looked at the ground "I...I gave up, Sammy. When Taock was taking my life force. I gave up. I didn't fight to live. I just gave up."

Sam didn't know what to say. What could someone say to that? So, instead, he just pressed antoher kiss to her head.

"But that's not all. I-I saw my mother. She talked to me, Sammy. She told me to open my eyes and look at you." Flare looked back at Sam. "You are what gave me strength to hold on."

Sam smiled. "You were the only reason I held on, too. I didn't want you to have to live in this world without me, because I know you wouldn't want me to have to do that. And I wouldn't want to."

Flare smiled weakly. She was still in some pain and she still felt weak. She didn't want Sam to worry, so she tried to hide the pained look on her face.

Sam closed his eyes, becoming tired again. He wondered where Dean was. There couldn't be that much paper work. Flare gently draped her arm over Sam's chest. He smiled, loving what he and Flare shared. "Flare," he whispered, "I love you."

Flare looked up at him and smiled. "I love you too, Sammy."

Jo walked over to Dean. "You're slow."

"Lot of papers," Dean replied.

Jo walked around him, taking a seat in the chair next to him. Leaning over, touching his wrist, she asked, "Do you want me to help?"

"If you want."

Jo took a stack of papers from Dean's hand, leaving him with about half of the original pile. "Dean," she started, grabbing the extra pen that was on his lap, "What's wrong? You seem...different."

"It's just...I almost lost Sam and Flare today."

Jo gently rested her head on Dean's shoulder. "I know. But everything worked out for the best. You should be happy, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Dean mumbled.

Jo reached over and touched Dean's cheek, forcing him to look at her. "Dean, look at me. What's wrong? You have been acting weird ever since you saw Abbey." She felt him trying to turn his head, so she tightened her grip. "Talk to me," she ordered. "Let me help you."

"I'm just...confused."

"Confused about what?"

"You and Abbey." Dean finished the paper work and gave it back to the nurse. She then gave him the okay to get Sam out of there.

Jo followed him to the desk. "What's there to be confused about, Dean. She's dead. I'm here. And besides, she's an angel now." She pushed her body closer to him, leaning into him so she could whisper in his ear. "She can't give you what you want anymore. But I can." She licked the shell of his ear seductively, hoping her tactic worked.

Dean closed his eyes, almost forgetting that he was in a hospital. "We will talk about this later," he said with a wink.

Jo smiled, feeling very accomplished. She followed him into Sam's room.

"It's about damn time, Dean," Sam complained. "What took you so long?" He sighed. "You know what, I don't even care. Let's just go." He stood, pulling his clothes on before he left the room, climbing into the backseat of the Impala and waiting for the rest to follow suit so they could get out of here.

Dean got into the driver's seat, and Flare sat in the back with Sam.

Jo joined Dean in the front, smiling slightly, thinking that she had won him since Abbey poofed. It didn't take them long to pull into another motel parking lot. This is where they were going to stay and rest the night, preparing to head off to Riverpass the next morning.

Sam got the key from the motel manager and carried his and Flare's bags in. He threw them down on one of the beds, claiming it as theirs. He then waited for Dean and the others to come in. He still wasn't done talking to Dean about what had happened with the apocalypse, but he figured the conversation should be private, so he waited. But as he continued to wait, he realized that Dean was probably tired and would get to bed as soon as he came in from outside. He sighed. There went his plans.

Flare looked at Sam and frowned. "Is there something wrong, hon?"

Sam sighed, shaking his head. "No, not really. It's just, I was kind of hoping to talk to Dean, but he's going to go to bed as soon as he gets in here. I know it. That's what he always does after a big job. And this job was epic." He lowered himself onto the bed, laying on his back so he did not rip out his stitches.

Flare lay next to him. "Sammy, don't blame yourself for what is going on. You didn't know."

"I knew," Sam protested. "I knew drinking demon blood was wrong. I just didn't care. I like the feeling of power it gave me. I liked being in control like that."

Flare stayed silent for a moment, then said, "I understand how you feel."

Sam shook his head. "No, you don't." He didn't mean to be so mean, but he couldn't help it. "I feel dirty. The things that Ruby and I did--" he trailed off, a tear rolling down his cheek.

"She told me," Flare mumbled.

Sam took a breath. "I'm so sorry. I didn't care what I was doing. I just wanted the blood. I didn't care what I had to do to get it. I was addicted."

"I forgive you, Sam. I know why you did it."

He smiled at her. "I just wish Dean was so forgiving." With that, he closed his eyes, preparing for sleep to take him.

Flare did the same and soon drifted off to sleep.

Dean walked into the room. Seeing that Sam and Flare were already sleeping, he chuckled, thinking they must have been tired. And he felt the exact same way.

Jo followed Dean into the room, walking to the shower. She felt dirty and needed to get washed up so she could sleep.

As soon as Dean's head hit the pillow, he was asleep. He hadn't realized how tired he actually was, well, not until he was actually laying down. As he slept, his mind wondered, pulling him toward the dream state.

_Abbey walked up to him, throwing her arms around his neck and pulling him in for a hard kiss. "Oh, Dean,' she mumbled. "I miss you so much." She kissed him again, pushing her tongue past his lips and tangling it with his, pulling him closer to her, molding their bodies together._

_Dean closed his eyes and moaned, wrapping his arms around her._

_She pushed him backwards, knocking him into the wall and pinning him there. "Why are you hanging out with her, Dean? I thought you loved me."_

_"I do, Abbey," Dean whispered. "I love you so much."_

_Abbey looked into his deep pools of jade. "Prove it," she ordered, pushing her body up against him and crushing their lips together with bruising force. She pulled away, looking into his eyes again. "I love you, Dean," she whispered, kissing him again._

_Dean licked Abbey's bottom lip. She moaned, gripping his tongue with her teeth gently. She ran her hand down his torso, stopping when she reached the hem of his T-shirt. She pushed her hands up under his T-shirt, spreading her fingers wide and placing her open palms on his bare chest, feeling his nipples harden at her touch._

_Dean moaned once again before he pulled off his shirt. Abbey kissed him again, trailing kisses along his cheek and sown his neck. Her hands moved to his belt, quickly unfastening it and going to work on his jeans. Dean gently pulled her shirt off, running his hand down her now bare back._

Sam moaned awake. "Dean!" he yelled. "Dean, get up!"

Flare jolted awake at the sound of Sam's voice. "Sam, whats wrong?"

Sam threw his legs over the bed, standing. "Nothing, don't worry about it. Go back to sleep." He walked over to Dean and shook him violently. "Dean, wake up!"

Dean jolted awake, a little annoyed at Sam for waking him. "Yeah, Sam? What is it?"

"Dude, what were you dreaming about?" Sam asked, a smile tugging at his lips. "Geez, you could wake the whole town with those happy noises you were making." Sam chuckled as he walked back over to his bed, sitting on the edge, waiting for Dean's reply.

Dean glared at him "Did you have something you wanted tell me? Or can I go back to bed?"

Sam smirked. "Nah, I was just doing the neighbors a favor by stopping your moaning." He chuckled again as he lay down on his good side, closing his eyes. "Night, Dean. Try to keep it down over there."

Dean quickly fell asleep again, hopping he was going to dream of Abbey again.


	7. Bonding With My Angel

**CHAPTER SEVEN: BONDING WITH MY ANGEL**

Jo crawled into the bed with Dean, wrapping her arm around his waist as she pulled him closer to her. He moaned as she moved her hand up and down, gently stroking his washboard abs with her fingertips. Lightly, she pressed a kiss to his neck, hooking her chin on his shoulder and closing her eyes.

Meanwhile, Flare draped her arm over Sam's chest, and he held her hand, falling asleep once again. However, once Flare finally drifted off to sleep, she was haunted by the reoccurring nightmare she had been having lately; the night her parents died.

_Abbey was scared. She didn't know what was happening. She could hear screams, and she was pretty sure they were her own. Her mother hugged her closely, pulling her head into her chest, hiding her eyes._

_Flare closed her eyes. "Mommy, whats going on?" she cried._

_"I don't know," Grace answered. "Brian!" she called again, feeling like she was going to drown in her own worry._

_"Get the kids out of here! Now, Grace!" Brian ordered his wife. "Get as far away from here as you can!"_

_Grace did as she was told, rushing out of the house and into the forest. She let go of Abbey and Flare, kneeling down in front of them. "Flare, honey, go. Run as fast as you can and don't look back no matter what. Take Abbey with you. Keep her safe." She planted a kiss on both of their foreheads before she ran back into the house. Back for Brian. _

_No sooner had she gone in, the house burst into flames, engulfing the entire building in less than seconds. "Mommy! Daddy!" Abbey screamed, sobbing._

_It felt like someone had kicked her in the gut. Horrified, Flare looked at her house, burning, her parents trapped inside. As she remembered her mother's words, she looked at her sister, grabbing her hand and starting to run. _

"Mom!" Flare yelled, jolting awake, her breathing heavy.

Sam's arms were around her in an instant, his mouth close to her ear, whispering that everything was going to be all right. That it was all a dream. He gently rocked her, kissing the top of her head as he held her tightly.

Dean had woken up, too, hearing the scream. "Is she okay?"

"Nightmare," Sam answered, continuing to rock her gently.

Flare closed her eyes, trying to fight back the tears. "I-I need to get some air," Flare said before walking out of the room.

Dean watched her go, seeing the hurt in Sam's eyes as she did. "Are you sure she's okay?" he asked.

"I'm sure she'll be fine," Sam answered. He bit his lip, wanting so badly to talk to Dean about what had happened with the apocalypse, but he was just too scared. Now wasn't the time.

Dean noticed that Sam had his 'I want to talk to you about something, but I'm afraid you'll get mad' look on his face. "What, Sam?"

"Nothing," Sam answered, turning his head away from Dean so he didn't see the truth. "I'm just tired is all. And worried about Flare." He lay back down. "You should just get back to sleep."

Dean shrugged, laying back down. He knew Sam was lying, but he was just too tired to care. They could talk about it later.

Sam rolled over, the gash in his abdomen giving him a harsh scream as it brushed against the scratchy sheets, causing him to hiss in pain. He hated feeling like this. Vulnerable, in pain...scared. He wanted his and Dean's relationship to go back to the way it was. He wanted everything to be okay again. Silently, he wept, covering his face with the pillow he was using as support.

Abbey wanted to go back to Dean as he slept, but she couldn't. Castiel was there, and he was giving her the third degree. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest as she listened to him yell.

"What you are doing to Dean is wrong. You are an angel, now!" he lectured. "You are not supposed to have those thoughts. You are verging on blasphemy, Abigail. You must stop. Or _I_ will stop you." With that, he disappeared.

Suddenly, he appeared before Dean, seeing that he was sleeping. "Dean," he whispered, not wanting to wake the people around him. He had Dean's necklace around his neck. There was a faint glow to it, but nothing more. Certainly it wasn't glowing bright enough to indicate that God was around this motel room. However, it was more than he had gotten all night. "Dean, we need to talk." He put his hand on Dean's shoulder, right over the hand print he had left on him when he had drug him out of Hell, sending a small shock through Dean's body.

Dean's eyes shot open as he pushed Castiel's hand away from him. "What the hell, Cas?!" he whispered loudly. "What did you do that for?!"

"You would not awake from your slumber," Castiel answered calmly.

Dean sat up, yawning. "What is it, now?"

"I am getting closer to God," Castiel answered. "Look at the amulet. It is glowing brightly. But not bright enough. I need you to give me a ride somewhere."

Dean looked at him, still half asleep. "Fine." He stood, the blankets falling off his body to reveal his black boxer shorts. He grabbed a pair of faded jeans and began pulling them on. "Just let me get dressed." Castiel nodded, waiting for Dean to clothe himself. Once Dean was dressed, he looked back at Castiel. "Let's go."

Castiel stood, a smile pulling to his lips. "I want to drive," he announced proudly, reaching his hand out towards Dean to collect the keys.

"No way," Dean complained. "Do you even know how to drive?"

Castiel knit his eyebrows in disappointment. "I can improvise. Give me the keys, Dean." He kept his hand open, waiting for the keys to be dropped into his waiting palm.

Dean bit his bottom lip, reluctantly handing Castiel the keys. "If you mess up my car, Cas, I will kill you," he warned.

Castiel wrapped his fingers around the smooth metal of the keys, smiling at Dean. "I will not mar the precious metal that you treat like a human," he assured him. He didn't really understand why Dean cared about the car so much, but he knew there would be no forgiving him if he ruined Dean's Impala. Therefore, he vowed to be as careful with it as possible.

Dean grabbed his jacket and walked out of the room, climbing into the passenger seat. Castiel placed the keys in the ignition, smiling as he heard the car roar to life. Now, he understood why Dean loved this car. It was a beauty. If he could feel such feelings of love, he would have devoted his heart to this car.

Dean looked at Cas, smiling. "Now you know why I love this car. And I only let a few people drive her, so be careful."

"Her?" Castiel asked, curious as to why he was talking about the car as though it were a female. "Dean, this is not a female. Not a woman. It is a very nice piece of metal. And it drives like a beauty."

Dean sighed, shaking his head at having to explain everything to Castiel. "Sometimes, people refer to things like cars or boats as 'her.'"

Castiel knit his eyebrows in confusion. "People are odd creatures," he announced, stepping on the gas harder, making the car roar and jump ahead. He liked this feeling. He wanted to car to go faster still, so he floored it, weaving in and out of other cars as he passed them, looking at Dean with a smile on his face. This was fun!

Dean was a bit surprised when the car sped up. He glanced over at Castiel and smirked before turning on the radio, wanting to see how Castiel reacted to his music.

Castiel stared at the radio, fascinated. Dean had good taste in music. He watched as Dean bobbed his head to the music, copying his motions, another smile breaking out on his features.

"It seems like your having fun, Cas," Dean said with a smirk as he watched Castiel mimic his motions. He reminded him of a little brother; of Sam when they were younger. His heart ached as he remembered how close the two of them had been.

"I am...having fun," Castiel answered, a bit surprised himself. He wasn't used to this feeling. He had never been able to do any of these things in his lifetime. "I like...spending time with you, Dean. You make life seem...fun. Worth living." Castiel felt a brotherly bond to Dean, but not in the way he felt connected to his real brothers and sisters. They would never go out for a joy ride and listen to loud music with catchy beats. No, they were boring compared to Dean.

Dean smirked again. "Welcome to my world."

Castiel smiled. He liked Dean's world. However, he couldn't stay. He hadn't just wanted to drive Dean's car around. No. He had business to talk with him about. And they needed to talk fast.

"So, I'm sure you didn't wake me just to drive my car. Whats up?"

"There is a problem. With you. Abigail seems to have attached herself to you," Castiel explained. "I believe she is leading you to blasphemy with dreams that she is sending you while you sleep. We must stop it. It is displeasing the other angels."

Dean sighed. "Aw, come on, she's not even a real angel. How did she even become one? I didn't know humans could be angels."

He pulled off the road, stopping the car right in front of a small cliff overlooking the entire town. "She is a different type of angel, Dean. Like a guardian angel. She was sent to you so she can help with the apocalypse, not send you erotic dreams. I need you to tell her that if she tries it again. I already spoke with her, but I get the feeling she does not want to obey my orders." Castiel gave Dean a hard look, his face expressionless. "She will listen to you." At that, he was gone.

Dean sighed before climbing into the drivers seat and driving back to the hotel.

Flare had taken a walk around the small town they were in, her mind clouded with questions and worries. She had forgotten her jacket and it was starting to get cold. She glanced at her watch. "5:00," she mumbled. "Guess I'm not getting back to sleep." Slowly, she walked up the stairs and stood outside the door, digging in her pockets for the key. "Damn," she mumbled, realizing she didn't have it. She knocked on the door, hoping that someone was up.

Jo felt around on the bed, trying to touch Dean. He wasn't there. "Dean?" she asked groggily, sitting up a bit. She looked over to her left, seeing Dean wasn't in the bed with her. No wonder she hadn't been able to find him. She looked over at Sam. "Sam, have you seen your brother?" she asked.

"Yeah," Sam answered, looking out the window, searching for any sign that Flare was coming back in. "Cas showed up and took him somewhere. Dean let him drive his car. They seemed like they were having a very friendly conversation."

Sam picked up his phone, looking to see if he had any missed calls. He didn't. He wanted to talk to Dean. He needed to talk to Dean. He was feeling so disconnected. He wanted everything to go back to the way it had been before Dean went to Hell. He needed to feel like he and Dean were a family again. He needed to feel loved by his brother. As he continued to think about all the things he wished would happen, he started wondering if he and Dean would ever be back to normal. Would ever be the family he longed for them to be again.

Dean pulled into the hotel parking lot and got out of the car. "Did you forget your key?" he asked, walking closer to Flare.

Flare frowned "Yeah."

Dean chuckled before pulling out his key and opening the door.

Sam snapped his head towards the door when he the knock. He stood, walking towards the door, cautious. Everyone they knew had a key and wouldn't need to knock. He let the breath he hadn't known he was holding when he saw Dean and Flare walk through. He flashed Flare a smile, glad that she was back. When he saw the look on Dean's face, however, his expression hardened. There was something wrong. Dean looked...mad. "Dean? What's wrong?" Sam asked, hoping he hadn't done something.

"It's nothing," Dean mumbled, glancing at his watch. "We should get going."

Flare nodded in agreement. "But I'm getting a shower first," she said, walking into the bathroom and turning on the water.

"Get going?" Sam asked, confused. "Where are we going? Do we have a case?" No one ever told him anything anymore. He felt so out of the loop. He wanted to know what Castiel had drug Dean away for, but sadly, he didn't think he had the right to ask Dean about his and Castiel's personal conversations anymore. He had lost that right when he brought forth Armageddon.

"We 're going to meet Bobby and Ellen," Dean explained. "So go get ready."

Flare quickly finished washing her hair and got out, wrapping a towel around her before sticking her head out the bathroom door. "Sam, could you hand me my bag?"

Walking over to Flare's bag and picking it up, Sam scrunched his face. "Why? I thought they told us to meet them at a hotel two days from now." He handed Flare the bag, then turned his attention back to Dean. "Is something wrong? Did something happen to them?" Panic began to build up in his mind as he thought of Bobby, the closest thing he had to a father since his dad had passed, lying on the ground somewhere broken and lifeless. He stared at Dean, willing him to explain why they were needed so much earlier than expected.

Flare quickly put her clothes on and walked out of the bathroom.

Meanwhile, Dean explained everything quickly. Again he looked at his watch. "Bobby and Ellen are probably already there by now."

"Then lets get moving," Flare said, grabbing her bag.

Sam felt a wave of relief wash over him when Dean explained that Bobby was okay. A job? Already? He had just come out of surgery and Dean expected him to do a job? Well, he would try, but he couldn't promise anything. He was barely useful now that he didn't have the blood to make him stronger on a good day when he didn't have any injuries, but with the large gash in his gut, he figured he was going to be pretty useless. With a small smile, he followed Flare, Jo and Dean out of the motel room and climbed into the back seat of the Impala, ready to go see Bobby and Ellen.

Flare sat next to Sam. "Those need to be changed," she said, gently lifting his shirt up a little before she dug in her bag and pulled out some bandages and alcohol.

Sam squirmed away from her, causing his shirt to fall back down, covering the evidence of his weakness. "Later," he said. He didn't want to risk being jabbed by her fingernails if Dean hit a bump while he was driving. Didn't want to risk Flare pushing too hard as the car rocked back and forth on the rocky back roads. Didn't want Flare to see how vulnerable he was now.

Flare gave Sam a small smile as she brushed some hair out of the way of his face so she could look into his eyes. They were so full of sorrow and guilt.

Meanwhile, Jo looked at Dean, smiling. "So, what do you think my mom will say when I tell her that we slept in the same bed last night?" she asked teasingly. She wasn't actually going to tell, but she did want to get a reaction out of Dean. He had been so distant since Abbey had come back in Jessi's body. And she was determined to change all of that now.

"I think she'd kill me," Dean said with a smirk. "I mean, remember when you went with me and Sam to go hunting? She almost killed me then. Just imagine what she would do if she thought I had sex with her daughter." He shuddered.

"That's because you lost me." Jo rolled her eyes and cocked her head to the side. "And used me as bait. No wonder my mother wanted to kill you." She sighed. "But she's over that now. Now, she would just physically hurt you. No death, promise." She chuckled. knowing her mother would definitely hurt Dean if he ever started a relationship with Jo. But she didn't care. She would risk it.

"And mess up this sexy face? I think not." Dean joked.

Jo laughed, her whole body rocking. She reached over and put her hand on his cheek, feeling the stubble that was beginning to grow. She rubbed her thumb back and forth, soothing him. "Yeah, me neither," she said with a smile. Using her feet to push herself closer to Dean, she kissed his neck, nipping at his skin before moving her head so she could whisper in his ear. "I wouldn't let her hurt you," she whispered, moving so she could kiss his neck once again. Her hand found it's way to his thigh, and she ran her fingers over his jean clad leg lazily, feeling his muscles tighten beneath her touch.

Dean tensed, his body reacting to Jo's touch. He licked his lips, gasping a little. "N-Not now, Jo," he begged.

Jo smiled against Dean's skin. She moved back into her own space, smirking. "What?" she asked innocently. "I'm not doing anything."

Dean smirked before turning on the radio, blasting it as he usually did.


	8. Haunted

**CHAPTER EIGHT: HAUNTED**

Sam groaned, moving his head so that it slid up the window as he slept, his nightmare making it almost impossible to wake up it was so vivid.

_"Sammy, look at me," Ruby ordered, grabbing his chin and forcing his face up so he could see her. He wanted to tell her not to call him that. That only Dean had the right, but he was too scared. Too scared she wouldn't let him feed off of her anymore. So, he kept his mouth shut. "Do you know what she's doing to you?" He didn't answer. Ruby tightened her grip, shaking his face slightly. "She's killing you, Sam. She wants you to think that she loves you, but she doesn't. In the end, she'll betray you. You know that, right?"_

_Sam shook his head. "No, she's not. She l--"_

_Ruby shook his head again. "No, Sam, she doesn't. This is all part of her plan. Her plan to destroy you." _

_Her eyes became softer as did her facial expression as she let his chin go, trailing her fingers up his face and cupping his face in her palm. "I'm the only one you can trust, Sammy. I'll never betray you. No one can love you like I do." She cocked her head, biting her lower lip. "Do you love me, Sammy?" _

_Slowly, Sam nodded, knowing that if he was a good boy, he would be rewarded. "Say it," she ordered. _

_"Tell me you love me."_

_"I love you," he mimicked, wanting to make her happy. She smiled, pressing her lips to his with bruising force, pushing her tongue inside his mouth and exploring every inch of him._

_"Do you want it?" she asked, her voice thick with lust. He nodded. God, he wanted it. So bad. He let her push him down flat on his back as she crawled on top of him. She cut her forearm, placing the wound to Sam's lips. He greedily drank, allowing her to take advantage of him as he satisfied his craving._

Sam jolted awake, wet with sweat that made his skin glisten in the moonlight. He let his head fall back on the seat, sighing as he realized that the nightmare hadn't been a nightmare at all, but a memory.

Flare looked over at Sam before moving closer to him and wrapping her arms around him gently. careful not to touch his stitches. "You're okay. It was just a dream," she whispered, shushing him.

Sam flinched away from her touch. He didn't want to be comforted. It hadn't been just a dream. He had been remembering things he and Ruby had done before he set Lucifer free. He was disgusted with himself as he remembered telling Ruby he didn't trust Flare. That he loved Ruby, not Flare just to get her blood because he craved it so badly. He was sick. And he didn't want Flare's comfort right now because he didn't deserve it.

Flare frowned before moving back over to her side. She was so tired, but every time she fell asleep painful memories woke her up.

"Dean, pull over," Sam ordered. He needed to get out of the car and just go for a quick walk. He needed to be away from all of these people. He felt trapped in this small space with Flare and his brother judging him. Looking at him as though he were a monster. He just needed it to stop.

Flare looked at Sam and frowned. He looked sick and nervous.

"Sam, whats wrong?" Dean asked pulling the car over.

"Nothing," Sam lied. "I just...I gotta pee." He climbed out of the car before Dean even stopped completely, practically running into the woods. He wanted to make sure no one was following him. Finally, after he was a good three or four yards into the woods, trees surrounding him, hiding him, he relaxed, leaning against one of the trees. Again, he was drug back into a memory.

_Ruby kneeled next to him, sitting in between his legs, her hands on his thighs. He felt awkward and exposed. And why shouldn't he? After all, he was only in a towel. Ruby had insisted that he shower before she gave him anything. She was arguing with him again. "Sam you can't tell Dean. Where would you even get a stupid idea like that?"  
_

_"I just...I hate lying to him. He's my brother," Sam argued._

_"I know. But Sam, he will never understand. He'll make you stop drinking my blood." She pushed her body closer to him, spreading his legs farther apart. "You can't kill Lilith without my blood. It makes you stronger, you know that."_

_"I know."_

_"Then you have to keep lying to Dean. To all of them. They can't know the real you. They won't accept it. Won't accept what you've become." She slid the blade across her neck, tilting her head so Sam could see the blood. Instantly, his mouth began to water. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into his lap and drank deeply. Drank like a vampire would drink._

The sound of Flare's voice brought him back to reality. Shit, she had followed him.

Flare kneeled next to him, putting one of her hands on his cheek and the other over his hand. "Sammy, something is going on. You seem...out of sorts. What's wrong?"

Sam pulled away from her, using the trees as support as he walked backwards. "Stop," he ordered. "Just stop it, Flare. I don't want your comfort or your worry. I'm fine. I just...I need some space right now, okay? A little room to breathe. You've been all over me since Taock almost killed me. I can't take it. I give you space when you need it, so why won't you return the favor?!" He knew he was being harsh, but he had to. He needed to get his point across.

Flare bit her bottom lip, trying to hold back tears. She calmly stated, "I don't want to leave you alone, because if Taock was brought back from the dead, then other things from my world may have been unleashed. And hell, they are worse then some things that you have faced. And if I lose you--" Tears started to escape from her eyes.

"I'm a hunter, Flare!" Sam reminded her. "I've been dealing with Supernatural shit my whole life. I can take care of myself. I don't need you trying to protect me. I'm 26 years old! I don't need you to play Mommy! I have Dean for that." Pain hit his heart when he realized that he might not have Dean anymore, but he pushed it aside. He closed his eyes and leaned against one of the trees again. "Just, go back to the Impala. If I'm not back in five minutes, then you can come back here and find me. I don't care. I just need five minutes."

Flare was silent for a moment before she nodded, quickly walking away from him. Sadness filled her heart. Sam had never talked to her like that. He had shunned her, and she was worried that he was going to drown in his own guilt.

"Mmmm..." Jo giggled, moving closer to Dean. "Alone at last." She straddled him in the seat, placing her hands on either side of his head, trapping him there. She then pressed a forceful kiss on his lips, instantly taking control and not letting Dean steal that from her. She was in control now, and she was going to take full advantage of that.

Dean squirmed under her, trying to gain control of this thing they had going here, but she wouldn't let him. Groaning in displeasure, he reached up, shoving his hands up her shirt, running his calloused fingertips up and down her back. By the time she broke the kiss, he was gasping for air, and as hard as a rock.

She looked down at him, her brown eyes staring intently into his green eyes. She smiled at him, moving her hands so they were resting on his shoulders as she began to move above him. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. She crawled off of him, sliding into the back seat, waving at him to follow. Gladly, he did, and once he was on her again, she pulled his shirt off, running her hands over every inch of his bare skin.

Sam closed his eyes more tightly, shaking his head back and forth. "What's wrong with me?!" he asked, no one in particular. Suddenly, he felt hands on his face. He recognized those hands. They were still so familiar to him. He opened his eyes, knitting his eyebrows in confusion. "Ruby?"

_"Hey, Sammy," she smiled. _

He shook his head. "No. You can't be here. You're dead." He tried to push her away, but she wouldn't budge.

_She grabbed his wrists and pinned him to the tree. "You didn't really think I'd stay dead, did you Sammy?"_

"Let me go!" he struggled. "I swear to God, I'll call Dean and he'll be over here faster than you can blink."

_Ruby laughed, hard, cold and evil. "Sammy, baby, Dean doesn't love you anymore. He found out who you really were and now he wants nothing to do with you." Sam shook his head, his tears coming down in hot streams. "Yes, Sam. Why do you think he's hanging out with Castiel so much?" Sam looked at her, his features that of a broken man. "Yeah, he's replacing you."_

Flare climbed into a tree, where she felt safe. It reminded her of the old days when her mother and father were alive. "Sammy," she whispered, "why won't you talk to me?" she asked although he was nowhere around, tears streaming down her cheeks. She felt so alone right now; the man she loves is pushing her away.

Sam sobbed, shaking his head. "No. D-Dean loves me."

_Suddenly Castiel appeared before him. "Wrong, Sam. Dean ____loved__ you. But then you turned yourself into a freak. A monster. He can't trust you. Not like he can me. I would never let him down. I am like his brother, now."_

_Ruby stepped on her tip toes so she could whisper in Sam's ear as he continued to shake his head. "Stop denying the obvious, Sam. I know you feel it. The tension between the two of you. The distance. He. Hates. You."_

_Castiel looked at Sam, his baby blue eyes scanning the broken man. "Do not worry. I will take care of Dean. He is my brother, now."_

"Stay the hell away from my brother!" Sam yelled to Castiel. He groaned in pain as Castiel punched him in the gut, causing his cut to burn and bleed. He would have fallen over if Ruby hadn't been holding him.

_"You should show me some respect," Castiel ordered._

_Finally, Ruby let him go, and she and Castiel took turns hitting him until he was on the ground, begging for them to stop._ "Dean! Dean, help! Ahh! Dean!" he screamed, begging for his brother to help him.

Dean jumped, hearing Sam screaming in pain, yelling for Dean to help him. "Sammy?!" he said, quickly grabbing his shirt and getting out of the car, completely forgetting about Jo. He ran to the sound of Sam's voice. Once he reached him, he skid on his knees, grabbing Sam's shirt, much like he had done when Jake had stabbed him back in South Dakota. "Sammy, calm down!" Dean yelled, worry showing on his features. "Whats wrong?"

Once Sam realized Dean was there, he grabbed onto his leg, clutching at him, never wanting to let go. "Dean, I'm sorry. I'm sorry," he sobbed. "I'm so sorry!" He clutched Dean's leg harder, digging his fingers into his flesh with bruising force. "I didn't mean to set him free. I believed Ruby when she told me that you'd hate me if you found out what I was doing. I'm so sorry! I just wanted to kill Lilith. I didn't know she was the last seal. I wanted her to pay for what she did to you. Dean, please don't replace me with Castiel! You're the only family I have left. Please? Help me."

Sam cried out in pain as Castiel kicked him in the stomach, hitting his wound with the tip of his shoe, tearing stitches. "Make it stop. Make them stop. It hurts!" As Sam writhed on the ground, blood poured from his wound, making him feel dizzy and weak; however, he refused to let go of Dean. He'd sooner die.

Dean held his brother; held him like he had done so many years ago, when Sam was a baby. "Sammy, it's okay! You're okay!" Dean looked at Sam's stomach in confusion; he was bleeding. "Dammit, Sam! You're bleeding!" He tried to pry Sam's fingers off of him so he could see his gash, but Sam wouldn't have any of it. "Sam, come on, let me go. Let me see you're stitches. You're bleeding through your shirt."

Sam fought to stay awake. "Say it, Dean. Say that you're not mad at me," he begged. "Tell me you're not replacing me with Castiel. I can't...can't live with you being mad at me." His grip on Dean tightened as he gasped for breath.

_Ruby had a hold of his throat, squeezing, crushing his windpipe. "Let him go, Sam. He doesn't want you anymore."_

More tears spilled out of Sam's eyes as he shoved his head into his brother's knee, making Dean's pant leg wet with his tears.

"I'm not mad, Sammy and no one can replace you. You're my baby brother." Dean finally managed to get Sam off of him. He pushed him down on the ground, applying pressure to the wound, his hands becoming stained with Sam's blood. Pulling out his cell phone, he called Flare; she was the best at patching people up.

"Hello?" Flare answered.

"Flare, go to the Impala and bring the medical kit to Sam. Hurry!" he said before hanging up.

_"Oh, now you've done it, Sammy," Ruby cooed. "He's going to tear you apart with that medical kit." She shrugged, kneeling next to him. Castiel was gone, so she was all alone. "And Flare's gonna help." She chuckled. "By the time their done with you, you'll be wishing you were dead."_

Sam pushed Dean's hand away from his wound, crawling away from him. "Stop," he sobbed, trying to put distance between him and Dean. He had a feeling Dean was going to grab his ankle and pull him back towards him, but he couldn't move any faster. "Hurts. No kit. Hurts, just leave it alone."

_Once Sam was away from Dean, he was vulnerable again, and Ruby struck. She pinned Sam down, straddling his hips. She lifted his shirt up and thrust her index and middle fingers into his wound, making scissoring motions to increase the pain._

Sam screamed in pain. "Ahhh! Ruby, no! Ruby, stop! Killing me!"

Sam had been right. Dean grabbed his ankle and pulled Sam towards him. He was now straddling his hips, holding his hand over Sam's wound, more blood spilling over his hands. "Sammy, I'm not Ruby, she's dead! I'm not going to hurt you. If you don't get that fixed you will die, and I'm not losing you again!" Dean fought the tears. "Do you hear me, you sunovabitch?! Now, calm the hell down!"

Flare ran over to Sam and Dean, quickly kneeling down next to Sam. "Something is making him bleed out quicker than normal. Dean hand me some gauze, we need to stop the bleeding." Dean handed her the gauze. "Sam, hold the gauze on the wound," she commanded.

Sam thrashed around, pushing Flare and Dean's hands away from him. He screamed in agony as Ruby continued her assault. "Ruby, please! Please, stop! I'm sorry!" He tried bucked his hips upwards, trying to get her off of him, but she wouldn't budge. With her free hand, she pushed down on his chest. He whimpered as he waited for her next attack.

_"I told you, Sam. They're hurting you. Not me. They just want you to think it's me. They're turning you against me, baby."_

Sam kicked his feet out, the sole of his foot connecting with Dean's chest, throwing him back. "Stop it!" He reached up and grabbed a hold of Ruby's shoulders. "Ruby, help! Make them stop. Please, I'll do anything. Just make it stop."

Sam was sweating, causing his shirt to stick to his body. Also, the sweat mixing with blood was like glue, causing the fabric to cling and burn his wound.

"What the hell's going on?!" Jo asked, running up to Dean. "It sounds like you're killing him in here."

Dean looked at Jo. "He's hallucinating, or something!" He snapped his fingers in Sam's face. "Sam, Ruby is dead! We killed her! Snap out of it!"

"Sammy, you are bleeding. Let me fix it, please?" Flare begged.

"No!" Sam yelled, pushing Flare away. "Leave me alone. Trying to...break me. Can't. Won't let you." He tried to crawl away again, but he was so tired. He fought back the urge to sleep, crawling, his stomach scraping against the hard, scratchy surface of the ground, making him bleed more. "Ruby! Blood...losing. Need...help."

_Ruby stood about a foot away, yelling at Sam. "Suck it up! Crawl faster! They're going to grab you! And then you're theirs! I can't help you if they get you first! Grow a pair, Sam! Move faster!"_

Flare stood and grabbed Sam's arms, holding them behind his back. "Sammy, you are killing yourself! You're going to bleed out!"

"Off!" Sam yelled, using all of the force he could muster to push her away again. He looked up and saw Ruby. He had lost all of the distance he gained earlier, so he had to start over. He crawled a little faster this time, reaching her. He grabbed her wrists and scratched at them with his short nails. "Blood. Want it. Need. Please?"

_Ruby pushed him away, stepping backwards about ten more feet, disappearing further into the woods. "Come on, Sam. Test yourself. Push." _Sam whimpered, looking at her, pleading with her with his big hazel eyes to come to him. _"You want my blood? Come and get it."_

Again, Sam started crawling. He saw Dean out of the corner of his eye, so he scrambled a little faster, hoping he could slip past Dean without being noticed.

He couldn't. Dean grabbed his ankle again, pulling him back towards him. He crawled up Sam's body and pinned his wrists to the ground. "Sammy, stop! Ruby's not here! She's in your head!"

Flare was kneeling over him now, whispering to him. "Sam look into my eyes. Block everything else out and just look in to my eyes. Dig deep down inside yourself. You know you can trust me. You know I would risk my life for you."

Sam struggled to break free, but he couldn't. He was too weak. "No," Sam protested. "Wanna hurt me. R-Ruby said so." He looked away from Flare, closing his eyes. "Dean, get...off...me. Have...to...get...Ruby."

_Suddenly, Ruby was right in front of him, standing over him. "You let Dean catch you, Sam. Now, you're getting locked back up in Bobby's panic room, where Dean's going to torture the hell out of you. And then he's kill you." She shook her head. "Game over, Sammy." She kicked him in the face, hard, and everything blacked out._

"Lets get him to the car," Flare mumbled. "I can patch him up there."

Dean nodded, picking Sam up and throwing him over his shoulder before walking back to the Impala.

Sam woke with a splitting headache which made his vision a little fuzzy. He tried to move, but found that he couldn't. Slowly, he rolled his head so he could look at his wrists. He gasped and began to panic when he found they were bound. "No!" he screamed, thrashing and pulling at the leather straps around his wrists. "Let me go!" he begged, tears streaming down his cheeks, mixing with his sweat and blood from his split lip.

_"I told you they were going to bind you again, Sam," Ruby spoke, shaking her head in disapproval. "You're weak. You're pathetic, Sam."_

Sam closed his eyes tightly, trying to shut her out. It didn't work. "Dean!" he yelled, wanting his brother to let him out. "Dean, you asshole, let me out!"

Flare poured some alcohol around Sam's wound. Lightly she cleaned it, trying not to hurt him.

"How is he doing?" Dean asked, glancing behind him.

"He will be fine," Flare said, as she grabbed a needle and thread, ready to stitch him back up.

"No!" Sam yelled, bucking his hips and knocking Flare off of him. "Leave me the hell alone!" He struggled against the bindings again, rubbing his flesh raw. "Dean, what the hell?! Untie me, you jerk!"

_"He won't," Ruby whispered into his ear. "He wants to make this as traumatic as possible. He's going to fix you. And then break you again. Until there's nothing left."_

"No," Sam cried, not wanting to believe his brother would hurt him.

Flare grabbed something out of her bag. "Whats that?" Dean asked, looking at the jar Flare was holding in her hand.

"It's called Posera; an herb from my land," she replied.

"What does it do?" Dean asked, not wanting his brother to hurt more than he already was.

"It will numb the area around the wound so he won't be in pain as I patch him up," she said looking down at Sam. "I'll let you go if you just let me fix that," she said quietly so Dean could not hear her.

_Ruby's eyes widened when she saw the jar. "S-Sam," she stuttered, staring at the jar._

"Wh-What? What is it?" He struggled again. "Ruby, what's wrong?!"

_"The jar. It's acid! Sam, she's trying to burn your skin away!"_

Sam shifted, his thigh hitting the bottom of the jar and knocking it out of Flare's hands. "Stay away from me with that shit!" He looked at Dean, his eyes glazed over as if they were void of life. As if Sam wasn't a part of this world right now but was someplace far away. "Dean, don't let her hurt me!"

Flare was surprised when Sam knocked the Posera out of her hands. She caught it before it hit the ground. "Sam it's not going to hurt you," she promised, sticking her hand in the jar and pulling a fist full out. "See?"

Sam's eyes widened when he saw Flare dip her hand into the jar. _When she pulled it back out, her skin was bubbling and melting away from muscle and bone._ "N-No!" Sam screamed, pulling at the restraints again. "Stop it! Get the hell away from me, psycho bitch!"

_Ruby smiled. "That's it, Sammy, fight her. Don't let her make you weak. You can overcome this. Fight. Harder, Sam."_

Sam thrashed around violently, groaning in pain and protest when the restraints wouldn't break until finally, he did. He collapsed on the bed, his breathing heavy. His entire body was shaking and he was wet with cold perspiration. "Go ahead, Dean," he cried. "Just do it already. If you're going to kill me, stop dragging out and just do it. No more games, please?"

Dean sat on the bed that Sam was on and he looked at him. "Sammy, please, snap out of this! I don't want to hurt you, the only reason we tied you down was so Flare could stitch you up and get you back on your feet. We didn't tie you down at first, but...then you went insane." Dean grabbed Flare's arm and showed him four scratch marks down her arm. Flare pulled her arm away quickly. "You clawed at her so we had to restrain you. I'm sorry, Sammy."

_"He's lying, Sam," Ruby whispered in his ear. "He wants you to think that this is all your fault. But it's not. He's not helping you, he's hurting you." Sam closed his eyes and rolled his head on the pillow, looking at Ruby. "That's right, Sammy. I'm the only one you can trust. You have to stop them before they kill you."_

"Want to...die," Sam whimpered, staring into Ruby's eyes. "Please?"

_"No, Sam. Look," she ordered, motioning towards Dean with he jaw._ Sam groaned as he saw Castiel standing behind Dean. _"He's Dean's brother, now. If you want Dean back, you have to take him." She leaned closer to him, her lips brushing against his ear as she spoke. "You have to kill Castiel."_

Castiel stared down at Sam from his position beside Dean. "He appears to be...lost. Inside himself." He looked into Dean's eyes. "What brought this on?" he asked forcefully.

Suddenly, Jo walked back into the room. "Bobby and my mother are on their way over here. He-He said he needed to see Sam before he could come to any conclusions."

"Dean," Castiel started, "you're brother is losing the war inside himself. You have to stop it."

"I don't know how it happened, Cas," Dean said, looking at his brother.

"How can we help him? I'll do anything," Flare said looking at the Angel. "I can't lose him."Dean nodded, agreeing that he would do anything for his little brother.

Castiel looked at Dean, confused. "You would do anything to help Sam? Even after all that he has done?" Castiel took a step closer. "Even after your inability to trust your own brother, you would still risk your life for Sam?" Castiel's baby blue eyes bore holes into Dean's as he stared at him, his expression hard and unemotional, waiting for Dean's answer.

Dean swallowed, nodding. "Anything."

"I second that," Flare piped up.

"No," Castiel said, turning to Flare. "It cannot be you. It has to be Dean. He and Sam are bonded. He has to be the one to sacrifice." Again, he turned to Dean. "This is the last time I am going to ask. If you do this, it will not be a walk in the park. It will hurt, both physically and mentally.. Sam is broken and piecing him back together will not be an easy task. So, are you sure?"

Dean looked at Flare. "Keep him safe." She nodded. Taking a deep breath, Dean looked back at Castiel. "I don't care. He's my brother. Do it."

Castiel looked down as though it pained him to have to do this to Dean. "As you wish," he answered. Suddenly, he pulled a knife out of his trench coat and grabbed Dean's wrist. He drew the blade across Dean's inner forearm, causing blinding pain and heat to shoot through his entire arm and spread throughout his body. Castiel then pulled the knife away. "I am sorry," he apologized, drawing the knife up and slamming it through Dean's right shoulder, not stopping until it went the whole way through.

_Ruby glared at Dean, he expression hard. "You can't have him, Dean," she spat, throwing her arm over Sam's waist. making sure she was applying pressure to his wound. "He's mine, now."_

_Sam blinked, looking over at Dean. "D-Dean?" he asked, seeing that he was there. Ruby tightened her grip on Sam, causing blinding pain to shoot through his torso. "Ahh!" he screamed, trying to squirm away. But Ruby was strong. Much stronger than him. _

_"How did you get here, Dean?" Ruby asked, pressing a soft kiss to Sam's temple as he panted through the aftershocks of the pain. "This is mine and Sammy's world. No one invited you."_

_"I invited me," Dean growled before looking at Sam. "Sammy, this...it's not real! You gotta snap out of it!" _

_Sam scoffed. "What do you care about what I do?" he asked in a bitter tone. "I already know what you're planning on doing. Why don't you just go back to your precious new friend Castiel. I hope he makes a good brother." Sam tried to hide the hurt in his voice, but he knew he was failing miserably. "I know he won't be as much of a disappointment as I was. Am." He rolled his eyes, sighing. "Whatever you want to call it. I don't even know anymore."_

_Ruby smiled, running her thumb across Sam's bottom lip. "He's with me, now, Dean. And I won't hurt him like you do. I won't judge him like you do. And that, Dean Winchester, is why he loves me. And why he keeps coming back to me. Even after I'm dead." She smirked maliciously, waiting to see the look of defeat Dean would inevitably show._


	9. Babysitting Gig

**CHAPTER NINE: BABYSITTING GIG**

_"Sammy, no one can replace my little brother. No one. And you don't disappoint me. Yeah, you may be a pain in the ass sometimes, but Sammy, we're family. All we have is each other anymore," Dean said strongly "Please?"_

_Sam shook his head, feeling the tears pricking at his eyes again. "Don't lie, Dean. I see the way you look at him. Like he's perfect. Like he's your best friend. And he told me he was taking my place." Sam closed his eyes at the memory of being brutally beaten by the angel and Ruby back in the woods. "You-You let him drive the Impala. You don't let anyone drive the Impala. Just me and you. But you let Castiel do it."_

_"That was just to get him to shut up!" Dean sighed. "Sammy...I didn't think it would bother you." Dean looked at the ground. "If I'd have known, I wouldn't have let him."_

_The tears that had been threatening to fall slipped down his face in a horizontal pattern, making his hair wet._

_Ruby stood, walking over to Dean. "Shut the hell up!" she ordered. "Sam doesn't need to hear this! Can't you see that you're upsetting him?!" She pushed Dean up against the wall, pinning him there, shoving her thumb into the gaping hole in his shoulder. "Look at him, Dean. He's broken. You did this to him. If only you could have just accepted him for who he was. The demon blood. But you didn't. And now, he trusts me more than he will ever trust you." She leaned in, licking a line up his cheek. "You lose, Dean," she whispered in his ear._

_He shut his tightly, ignoring the pain in his shoulder. "Sam, come on!" Dean begged. "I'm sorry,_ _Sammy. Okay?! I'm sorry. But you have to fight this!"_

Flare kneeled down next to Dean, looking up at Castiel. "Will he be okay?"

Castiel looked at Flare. "Physically, yes, but if he does not bring Sam back, he will never be okay. It will eat away at him until there is nothing left. And then--" Castiel stopped, not wanting to think about Dean's eventual suicide if he failed.

Flare looked at Cas. She was still holding her arm; Sam had dug his nails in deep, and it was stinging. "Well, lets hope he gets him."

Castiel looked at Flare. He was not a people person. He never really had to interact with them before seeing as how he was angel and was supposed to merely watch as the humans lived their lives. He was never meant to interfere. Dean was really the only human he could stand. He shifted, burning with the need to get out of the room, but he wanted to stay. To make sure he was there to help Dean if he needed it. So, instead, he merely pretended as if Flare wasn't there.

Flare glanced at Castiel then back at Dean. She bit her bottom lip, trying to think of something to say. The awkward silence thing was, well, awkward.

"Um, so my parents, are they--?" she trailed off, figuring Castiel knew what she was trying to ask.

Castiel ignored Flare; something was wrong with Dean. "Dean?" he asked, kneeling beside him and touching his good shoulder. "Dean!" He looked at Flare. "Something is happening!"

Flare kneeled down next to Dean. "Whats wrong?"

_Sam looked at Dean, wincing as he thought of how badly his arm must be hurting with Ruby inflicting the pain. "Dean, I--" he started straining against the bonds. "I can't get up. I'm tied to the bed." His face hardened. "Where you had me. Tied me down."_

_Dean was starting to feel light headed. Ruby's attack was strong...and painful. She was relentless and Sam couldn't help. "S-Sam, try harder," he begged, fighting unconsciousness._

_Sam shook his head, pulling at the straps. "Ruby, stop! You're hurting him!" he ordered. "Stop it!"_

_Ruby looked back at Sam. "Shut up, Sam! Here, I make the rules. And I want him to suffer. And you do, too. Look at what he's done to you."_

_Sam pulled harder, his flesh burning as he rubbed it raw. "No, dammit! He's my brother, leave him alone!"_

_"He doesn't care about you, Sam! He did this to you! He only cares about Castiel, now!"_

_Closing his eyes, Sam concentrated, remembering all of the training he had endured while with Ruby. His eyes snapped open, and he turned his head to the side, Ruby slamming into the wall in that same direction. He smiled._

_"Sam! What the hell are you doing? Let me go!" She struggled, but couldn't move. Dammit, she was losing him. "Sam!"_

_Sam blocked her out, looking at Dean. "Untie me."_

_Dean stumbled over to Sam, untying the ropes. He helped Sam up to a sitting position, holding his upper arms, shaking him slightly. "Sammy, snap out of it!"_

_Sam stood quickly, causing Dean to let him go. Keeping his hold on Ruby, he looked at Dean , rubbing his wrists to ease the burning pain. "Thank you," he mumbled, still unsure if Dean was going to kill him like Ruby had promised he would. Quickly, he thrust an open palm out towards Ruby, causing her to slam against the wall harder, the plaster cracking around her. "You're dead. And it's time you go back to Hell." He concentrated harder, and before he knew it, Ruby was gone, leaving the woman she was riding laying dead on the floor. He sighed, looking back at Dean. He gave him a small half smile, not wanting to say 'I'm sorry' for the eight hundredth time since this had all started._

Sam's eyes snapped open, and he tried to stand, but he realized he was still tied down. He grunted in pain as he lowered his head back to the pillow. His wound was screaming at him and he knew he needed to let someone patch him up before he got an infection.

Castiel kneeled down next to Dean. "Are you all right?" he asked, his hand still on his good shoulder. His eyes were full of worry and relief. Worried that Dean was not okay, but relieved that he had woken up. And brought Sam with him.

Dean winced. "Yeah, I'm fine. Well, other than this damn shoulder!"

Castiel touched Dean's shoulder, closing his eyes. When he moved his hand, Dean's wound was gone. "You did it. Sam is now better. You are a great brother. And a great protector." He looked down at the ground. "Which is why I must ask a favor of you."

Dean frowned. "What now?"

"Abigail is being sent away for a while," Castiel explained. "I need you to watch over her vessel. If the demons get a hold of it, they will destroy it. Please, Dean. You are the only one I trust with this job."

"Sure, whatever."

Meanwhile, Flare glanced at Sam and grabbed the medical kit before she untied him. She started cleaning the wound, trying to hide the scratches on her arm. She poured some alcohol around the gash and started to dab at it.

Sam hissed through clenched teeth as Flare cleaned his wound. God, it hurt so bad! He grasped at the sheets on the bed, his knuckles turning white as he dug his fingernails into the fabric.

Flare grabbed the jar of Posera and rubbed it around the wound before she started to stitch it back up.

"Wh-What's that?" Sam asked, looking at the jar Flare was holding.

"Posera," Flare replied. "It's an herb from my home land. It numbs the wound." She was silent for a few minutes as she patched him up. "Do you--? You know what, never mind."

"What?" Sam asked, knowing that she wanted to talk to him about something.

"Do you...remember anything when you were, out of it?" She asked, covering her arm.

Sam shook his head. "No, not really. Why? What did I do?"

Flare slowly uncovered her arm, revealing three deep scratches. "You also called me a bitch," she mumbled. Sam stared at her arm in disbelief. "I'm so sorry," he said, tearing up again. "I didn't--I'm sorry."

"I-It's fine, you didn't know what was going on," she said, covering her arm again. "You also told me to leave you alone. That you didn't want me to play mommy. And you needed some space, so go away." Flare sighed. "I only want to know one thing: Was that you saying that?"

Sam looked away. Was that him saying that? He loved Flare, but she was touchy feely and all over him all of the time. He did need space, but he didn't want her to disappear completely. Sighing, he did the only thing he could think of; lied. "No, I didn't know what I was saying. I'm sorry."

Flare nodded. "I'm glad your okay, Sammy."

"Dean," Castiel gave him a stern look. "I don't think I need to remind you that you may not...do anything with the vessel. It is fragile. And you will break it."

"Dude, she's only 17. I'm not that bad of a guy," Dean mumbled, crossing his arms over his chest.

Castiel gave him a pointed look. "That is not what Uriel tells me. And I was merely warning you." He closed his eyes, concentrating. Suddenly Jessi appeared in the room, standing next to Dean. She fell, her body leaning against him. "She is somewhat disoriented. I would suggest some water." With that, Castiel was gone.

Dean stood and grabbed a bottle of water. He handed it to her. "Here, drink," he said calmly.

Jessi took the water and drank. She pulled the bottle away from her lips, studying Dean. "Hey, I know you. I helped your brother." She looked around, confused. "Where-Where am I?"

"Don't worry, your safe," Dean assured her.

"I didn't ask if I was safe," Jessi replied. "I asked where I was. Am I not supposed to be in the hospital? And why am I around you of all people? I don't even know you."

Dean sighed. "You won't believe me."

Jessi stood, backing away from Dean. "Look...whatever your name is. If you're some kind of stalker freak who thinks you're going to kidnap me and then kill me after I help your brother with my blood, then you can just forget it." She pointed a finger at him. "I have a black belt, and I will not hesitate to protect myself."

"Look, I'm not going to hurt you." Dean took a step closer to her.

Hearing the commotion on the other side of the room, Flare looked. "Aw, crap," she mumbled, walking over to Dean's side. "Hey, calm down. We're the good guys."

Jessi scoffed. "And give me one good reason why I should listen to you!"

Flare looked at Sam then at Dean before she shook her head. "I'll talk to her. If she will let me."

"I don't want to talk to you," Jessi said, backing away further. "Just stay the hell away from me. I'm serious, I will hit you." Suddenly, Bobby walked into the room, bumping into Jessi. As he was about to apologize, a fist connected with his mouth, and then he was thrown over her shoulder, his back hitting the ground hard. He groaned in disapproval.

"Dean, what the Hell's going on?" he asked angrily.

Ellen was right behind him. "What the hell?!"

"Jessi calm down! I'll tell you what happened if you just calm down," Flare said calmly, ready to fight if she had to.

Dean helped Bobby up. "You're a little late."

Jessi threw another punch, connecting with Flare's jaw, knocking her back. Then, she kicked Ellen in the gut, knocking her and an oncoming and unsuspecting Jo out of the fight as well. Now, she just had Bobby and Dean. Another well-aimed punch to Bobby's face, and he was down again, leaving only Dean. She threw her hand towards him, but he caught her wrist. She tried with her other hand, but he caught that wrist too. Not seeing another way out, she took the cheap shot, bringing her knee up and connecting hard with his groin. As he fell, she ran out the door.

Dean groaned. "Owww."

"Get up you big baby!" Flare commanded before running out of the room, following Jessi. She quickly caught up with her and rammed her into the ground, pinning her arms down. "You are not safe out here alone! There are things in this world that you don't know about;things that will kill you! Lucky for you," she said standing up, "you ran into one that won't hurt you." She pulled back her hair revealing her pointed ears.

Jessi scrambled to her feet. "Stay away from me," she ordered, kicking Flare's feet from under her and running down the street again. She was fast, so there was no way anyone was catching her. Especially not Dean since he had a little problem with his groin right now. The only way they were getting her is if they had a car.

"I try to be nice, and this is what I get," Flare mumbled before scrambling to her feet and running after her again.

Jessi made a sharp right turn into an alley, causing her to fall onto her knee. Quickly, she stood, continuing to run until she was at the end of the alley. Looking down, she noticed that her jeans were ripped, and he knee was skinned, causing her pants to become red with blood. Hearing footsteps, she ran into an open door, which led to a bar. She looked around, hoping those crazy wankers that had been following her wouldn't come back.

Dean slowly got up, still a little winded. "Ellen, Jo, stay here with Sam. Bobby and I will go help Flare."

Ellen nodded as she helped Jo up. "Who was that girl?"

"Oh, you know..." Jo started. "She's a vessel. She used to be an angel, but I guess Abbey's on holiday." She rubbed her ribs, wincing at the pain there. Geez, she never realized how much heavier her mom was than her until she had fallen on her. "That was Jessi. And she must be scared out of her mind." Looking at the ground, she felt kind of sorry for the young girl.

"So do you think Flare has a chance at finding her?" Ellen asked Sam.

Sam shook his head. He hadn't really been paying much attention to anyone in the room. He was still a bit out of it. Slowly, he stood, walking to the door. "I have to get out of here."

Jo stepped in Sam's way so he could not advance further. "Sam, I don't think that's such a good idea, right now," she warned.

Sam turned back. "What? Why?"

"Dean said to stay here with you, which means you wants you here."

Sam scoffed. "So, what? I'm a prisoner, now?"

"No. I just don't think you should leave."

Sam stepped closer to her. "Jo, get out of my way."

The bar was loud, music and bright lights being a big theme. It smelled of beer, smoke and sex. She had never been in a bar before, but she knew right away that she wouldn't like having to be here very long. Her leg hurt, and she just wanted to get it cleaned off before going to another hideout. The crazies couldn't be too far away, after all. Slowly, she walked to the ladies room, turning on the hot water and dabbing at her leg with a paper towel. It hurt, but at least it got the job done.

Flare had followed the blood droplets into a bar. "Aw man, not a bar," she mumbled before she opened the door.

Jessi walked out of the restroom, seeing Flare walking into the bar. "Bollucks," she whispered, turning in the opposite direction and hiding her face. She hadn't been paying attention, so she ran right into someone. "Oh, I am so sorry. I wasn't paying attention. Are you all right?"

The man looked at her, smiling. "Yeah, I'm fine sweetheart. You look a little young to be in a bar."

"Oh, yeah. I'm not drinking. I'm just...hiding."

"Oh. Well, I won't tell if you don't," he chuckled.

She smiled. "Thank you."

He reached his arm out, waiting for her to shake his hand. "I'm Nick."

She grabbed his hand, shaking it. "Jessi." Jessi ducked her head as she heard Flare yell her name. "Hey, can we get out of here. That girl's the one that's after me."

Nick looked at Flare. He nodded, keeping his hold on Jessi's hand and walking them out of the bar.

"Damn," Flare mumbled to herself, before following her again. She could not let this girl get hurt.

"Sam, your going to hurt yourself. You need to rest," Ellen ordered.

"No, I'm not," Sam protested. "I want to leave. You can't keep me here." He tried to get past, but Jo stopped him, putting her hand on his chest, right over his tattoo. He looked at her hand.

"Sam, you need to stay here. Dean will be back in a little while. Then, you can go wherever you want."

Sam sighed. walking back over to the bed and plopping down, figuring there was nothing better to do.

"Anyway, do you think Flare has a chance of catching this girl?" Ellen repeated.

"I don't know," Sam answered, resting his head in his hands. He breathed, wanting so desperately to be away from these two. Normally, he wouldn't mind being around Jo and Ellen, but now he just felt like they were judging him. He had started the apocalypse, and there was no going back from that. And he didn't want to have Jo and Ellen there without Dean. It sounded ridiculous, but when Dean was around, it made everything better. Made him feel a little less bad.


	10. Trouble In Paradise

**CHAPTER TEN: TROUBLE IN PARADISE**

Jessi gladly followed Nick out of the bar. She didn't understand why this weird girl with the pointy ears was following her, but she didn't want to stick around and find out. As they walked, she ticked her gaze over her shoulder, making sure the girl wasn't following.

"So, you're her, aren't you?" she heard Nick ask.

"Huh? Her who?"

"The vessel of the Winchester's angel?"

"I-I'm sorry, I don't...know what you're talking about."

Nick looked at her, letting her go. "I know you are."

As soon as Nick let her go, she tried to move, but two more hands grasped her arms, holding her in place. She struggled, trying to find the best way out. "No, let me go!" she yelled.

Suddenly, Nick touched her head, causing her to black out.

Flare ran out, following Jessi and the man. "Hey, meat head!" she yelled once she saw him with Jessi "Drop the girl and leave, now."

Nick turned on her. "You don't know who you're talking to, girl." He stepped closer to her, leaning into her, whispering in her ear. "I...am...Lucifer." He pulled back, grabbing Jessi's arm and disappearing, taking her with him.

Flare just stood there, her face pale and jaw agape. She felt sick. "C-Cas!" She called quietly, hoping he would come. But when he didn't, she slowly pulled her cell phone out and called Bobby.

"Bobby, your cell's ringing," Dean said, not taking his eyes off the road.

Bobby pulled his cell out of his pocket. "I can hear it, you idjit." He flipped it open. "Hello?"

"B-Bobby...d-don't b-bother l-looking for Jessi." Flare took a deep breath. "H-He has her...I froze and h-he got away."

Who has Jessi?" he asked, confused. "Don't tell me you let Lucifer get her?!" He looked over at Dean, rolling his eyes.

Flare was silent for a moment. Finally, she yelled, "Yes! Lucifer has her, Bobby. How am I gonna get her back?!"

"Dammit, Flare!" Bobby yelled. "Why did you let him get her? I don't have the slightest clue how to get her back. Where are you?"

Flare closed her eyes. "I'm at the Lucky Stars Bar...out back," she said, her voice full of defeat. "I'm sorry." She hung up the phone. Slowly, she looked down at it, finding Sam's number and calling it. She sighed when it went to voicemail. "Hey Sam. I-It's me. I..." she took a deep breath. "H-He got Jessi...and I'm going to go and find her. So I have to...part ways for a short time. I lost her and I have to find her. I love you, Sammy." With that, she hung up the phone. Flare sighed before she walked out of the ally; on her way to find Jessi.

Ellen looked at Jo then at Sam. "What's wrong kid?"

Sam looked at Ellen. "I just don't want to be trapped here," he explained. "I want to be out there, with Dean. I just...I want everything to go back to the way it was before."

Ellen sat next to Sam and put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, it will be."

Sam smiled at Ellen. He knew she was just trying to help, but she wasn't doing a very good job. He scooted up on the bed, laying down, turning his back to her. "Uh, I'm just really tired," he whispered, trying to hold back the tears. "I think I'm just going to go to sleep." He closed his eyes. "You guys can go, I promise I won't try to leave."

Ellen stood. "You sure you want to be alone right now?"

Sam nodded sleepily. He didn't want to be alone, no. But at the same time he didn't want Ellen and Jo watching over him like hawks. And besides, the person he wanted to be with wasn't there, so he was going to have to settle for being alone.

"Don't tell me--" Dean started, only to be interrupted by Bobby.

"Lucifer has Jessi," Bobby cut him off. "Dammit, boy, what the hell are we going to do, now?"

"I don't know, Bobby," Dean huffed, confused as to why Bobby was asking him what to do. Bobby was the smart one. Dean was just the adorable one.

Jerking awake, Sam realized that he was sweating. Damn, the nightmares were back. Slowly, Sam looked at his phone, seeing that he had a voicemail. Quickly, he opened it, punching in his password. It might have been Dean, and then he could talk to him about this issue that has been pressing down on him since they left the monastery. His heart sank a little when he heard Flare's voice on the other line. Not that he didn't want to talk to her, it was just that he wanted to talk to Dean more.

He listened intently as she explained the situation. He closed his eyes, wondering how long she would be gone. Wondering why he didn't seem to care that much that she was leaving. He did love her, but lately, with everything that was going on, he just didn't think he had the time, or the patience to be in a relationship, now. He needed to get things back to normal with Dean, first.

Once the message ended, Sam punched the END button. Then, he called Dean, waiting for him to answer. He was no use to Dean here. He wanted be out there, helping. Not stuck in the motel being babysat by Ellen and Jo. He was better than that.

Bobby was getting restless. "Drive faster, you idjit!" He rolled his eyes. "Castiel is going to tear you a new one for losing Abbey's vessel."

"I didn't lose her," Dean corrected. "Flare did."

Bobby rolled his eyes. "That only works in children's court, boy. Castiel told you to watch her and you didn't. Now, Lucifer has her and all Hell is going to break loose. Again." Bobby pulled out his cell phone and called Flare again.

Dean frowned. "He is going to kill me," he sighed.

Flare glanced at her cell, seeing Bobby's name. She ignored it. She didn't really feel like being yelled at right now.

"Dammit," Bobby breathed, closing his phone. He looked at Dean when he heard his words. "Well, don't expect me to help you, boy." He opened his phone again and dialed Flare's number. He could do this all night until she answered.

Flare answered her phone. "Dammit, Bobby, leave me alone! I'm going to clean up my mess. I'm going to find Jessi if it's the last thing I do!"

"Didn't anyone ever tell you to respect your elders?" Bobby spat. not liking Flare's tone. "Now, I told you to stay the hell put. So do it. Dean and I will be there in less than two minutes." He looked over at Dean. "Especially with the way _he_ drives. And there's no use going off and getting yourself killed. So wait!"

"You don't need to get yourselves killed for my mistake. So don't even bother coming. I'll be gone."

"Flare, I swear to God, if you leave that spot, Lucifer won't even have a chance to kill you because I will do it myself." Bobby huffed, knowing that wasn't the right road to take to get his way. "Listen, just...think of Sam. How do you think he'd feel if he knew you were walking into a trap that will surely kill you?"

Meanwhile, Dean looked at his now ringing cell phone. "Yeah, Sammy?"

"Dean?" Sam sighed, glad Dean had answered. "I need you to call Jo and Ellen. Tell them to let me leave. I don't want to be stuck here. I'm no good here. You and I both know I can do something out there to help. Please?"

Dean rolled his eyes. "Sam, your going to hurt yourself. You need to sleep."

"No, Dean, I don't want to sleep. I already slept when I was out cold," Sam complained. "Just, please, do this for me. Call them and get this all squared away, and then tell me where you're headed. I'll rent a car and get there as fast as I can."

Dean sighed "Fine. Have you heard from Flare, though?"

Tears started to roll down Flare's cheeks. "Tell him that I love him and I will see him soon. I can't let you guys die because of something I did. I can't lose another family."

"No, Flare," Bobby protested. "If you want him to hear that you're going to have to tell him yourself." Bobby climbed out of the car as Dean pulled into the lot. "Now, I mean it when I say don't move." He motioned to Dean to grab Flare who was standing with her back turned about a yard in front of them. His only thought was to keep her on the line long enough to distract her from Dean.  
Sam bit his bottom lip. "No, I...haven't heard from her since you guys left," Sam lied. "Why, is there something wrong?"

"She's going after Lucifer, Sammy. Alone."

"I'm sorry, Bobby," Flare said, hanging up the phone and taking off.

"Dammit, boy! Why don't you get that phone from out of your ass and pay attention?!" Bobby yelled, seeing Flare run off.

Sam cringed when he heard Bobby yelling at Dean. "Um...so, why is that bad? I mean, it's not like she's going to find him. Unless, you know, he wants to be found. I mean, we haven't been able to find him and we're ten times better than she is at tracking. I don't think we have to worry about her."

"Sam, you know how she is. She will stop at nothing to save someone. Kinda like you, Sammy," Dean said, glaring at Bobby.

Sam rolled his eyes. "I know, Dean, but this isn't just some demon. It's Lucifer. Ruler of Hell. Flare will not find him if he doesn't want to be found. And if he's torturing Jessi, I'm guessing he doesn't want to be found." He sighed. "Just call Jo and Ellen. Tell me where you are, and I'll be out as soon as I can."

"Fine," Dean said, hanging up the phone as he turned to Bobby. "He...doesn't seem to care."

"Don't give me that look, boy," bobby ordered, gathering some weapons from Dean's trunk. What was it with these young kids today that they thought they were in charge? Well, he would have none of it. "And what do you mean, he doesn't care?" Bobby asked, surprised. "What did he say?"

Dean told Bobby what Sam had said. "I just don't get it."

"There's something wrong with your brother, and you need to fix him," Bobby ordered.

"I mean, Flare could die...and he doesn't care?!Why?!"

"I don't know, boy, he's your brother!" Bobby yelled, rolling his eyes at Dean's mindset that he knew everything.

Sam pulled from the bed, throwing his hand to his abdomen as his gash stretched, pulling at his stitches. He walked out of the room, almost running right into Ellen. "Ellen, hi," he squeaked. "Um, I'm going to leave, now. Dean said I could."

Ellen crossed her arms. "Really? When did he say that?"

"I, uh, just talked to him on the phone. You can call him if you want to."

"Jo, call Dean," Ellen ordered.

Jo picked up the phone and called Dean. She smiled when she heard his voice on the other line "Hey, Sam's trying to leave. He said you said it was okay. Is it?"

"Yeah, it's fine Jo," Dean mumbled before he explained what was going on.

"She what?!" Jo squeaked. "What is she thinking?! He'll slaughter her!" She looked over at Sam, lowering her voice to a whisper. "Does-Does Sam know?" She nodded to her mother, letting her know Dean said it was okay for Sam to leave.

"See?" Sam asked, looking at Ellen. "I told you Dean said I could go. Now, could you please move? I have to get to him. He needs me."

Ellen frowned before she stepped out of the way.

"Yeah, he knows. But he doesn't seem to care," Dean replied sadly. "I don't know what is going on with him."

Sam stepped out the door, closing it behind him. He searched the parking lot, looking for a suitable ride. He found a cherry red mustang, and walked towards it. He opened the driver's side door and climbed in. Leaning forward, he managed to hot wire the car, the engine roaring to life. He pulled out of the parking lot, on his way to wherever Dean and Bobby were. He wanted to help. To prove to them, and himself, that he was still useful.

"He doesn't care?" Jo asked in disbelief. "What makes you say that?"

Dean sighed before telling Jo what Sam had said.

"That's odd," Jo said. "I thought Sam and Flare were, like, joined at the hip, nothing can separate them from each other, I love you to pieces couple. Why wouldn't he care?"

"I don't know, Jo. It is just really odd. I'm kinda worried about them."

Sam pulled into the lot, seeing Dean on the phone and Bobby gathering weapons. He killed the car's engine, walking over to Bobby. "Who's he on the phone with?" he asked, nodding his chin in Dean's direction.

"He's still talking to Jo," Bobby answered. "Here, give me a hand with this stuff, you idjit." Sam took the weapons Bobby was handing him, his eyes intent on Dean. He wanted to know what they were talking about, but he was too far away to hear.

Bobby walked over to Dean, seeing that he was still on the phone. "Dean, you can talk later, you idjit!" he yelled. "We need to move now. Wrap it up!" Sam couldn't help but smile as Bobby ordered Dean around like he was some child and Bobby was his father.

Dean sighed. "I'll talk to you later," Dean said hanging up the phone. "So, where do we start?" he asked.

"I don't know," Bobby answered. "I've been trying to call her again, but I got no luck. Maybe you should give it a try while we walk that way. You know, where she ran in the first place."

Dean nodded before calling Flare's number.

Flare ran as fast as she could. She had no idea where she was going, but also no intention of stopping. She needed to find Jessi. If Lucifer had her for too long, she had no idea what might happen to the poor girl. She stopped when she heard her phone ringing again. Flare sighed. \"What the hell do you want Dean?"


	11. Psychic

**CHAPTER ELEVEN: PSYCHIC**

"Listen to me, you selfish little brat," Dean spat. "I am sick and fucking tired of your shit. Ever since I saved your life you have been acting ten kinds of crazy. Now, you're going to keep your little ass glued to the spot you're in right now and you're not going going to move a muscle. Do you hear me? Don't even scratch your nose. And then, you're going to tell me where you are, and Sam, Bobby and I are going to come and get you. I didn't save your life so you could run off and get killed by Lucifer!" He took a breath, looking over at Bobby and Sam. Bobby was looking at him like he was nuts and Sam was just staring blankly at a pebble on the ground.

"Leave me the hell alone, Dean! I'm not letting you Sam and Bobby get killed because of me. You should have just let Taock--" Flare stopped not wanting to finish what she was saying.

Dean almost growled into the phone. "I swear to God, Flare, if you don't get that stick from out of your ass, I'm going to make you wish Sam and I had never found you in the forest that day. Now, get off your high horse and tell me where the hell you are!"

"I already wish you didn't! Because none of this would have happened! All I've done since you found me was hurt you! Abbey and I..." she started to cry, "we...we should have just--"

"Stop grovelling!" Dean ordered. "Tell me where you are, Goddammit! I'm tired of your games!" Dean sighed, pressing his hand against the wall of the alley to keep himself grounded. He wanted to hit something. Anything. "Flare, come on!"

Flare sighed "I'm on the corner of 'Intel Boulevard," she mumbled. "I'm sorry, Dean. It's just I don't want to lose another family to demons."

"Don't move, we'll be there in two minutes." Dean hung up the phone, turning to Bobby and Sam. "She's at the corner of Intel Boulevard." He walked in that direction, knowing Sam and Bobby would follow.

Bobby turned and followed Dean, only to turn back around, seeing Sam lost in thought. "Sam!" Sam jerked, looking at Bobby. "Let's go, boy!"

"Yeah, okay. Sorry, Bobby," Sam mumbled, following after the two hunters.

Dean fell back, letting Bobby lead so he could talk to Sam. "So, whats up with you and Flare?" he asked quietly.

Sam looked at Dean, confused. "Wh-What do you mean?" he asked, pretending he didn't know exactly what Dean meant. "I don't--There's nothing wrong with us. We're fine."

Dean looked at him. "Sammy, a few weeks ago if I told you Flare was going after the Devil you would have went after her before I even finished what I was saying. So, whats up with you guys?"

"There's nothing wrong with us, Dean. I just knew she wouldn't be able to find him." He slapped his hand to the back of his neck, massaging it. "I've done my research, you know?"

Dean frowned. "It's just, before Taock almost killed you, it seemed that nothing could keep you two apart. But now, you just seem like you want her to go away."

"Look, Dean, I'm just tired. I don't really want to talk about this right now." He hung his head. "Can we just drop it?"

Dean nodded "Sure, Sammy," Dean mumbled, looking ahead of him.

Sam shook his head, rolling his eyes. "I'm sorry, Dean. I didn't mean to be such a jerk. I just...I don't know what's wrong with me anymore."

Dean placed his hand on Sam's shoulder. "Don't worry about it, Sammy."

Sam shook his head, fighting his tears. It felt nice to have Dean's hand on his shoulder. Comforting. For a minute, he actually allowed himself to believe that everything was okay between Dean and himself. It was a lie, but it was one that he was going to cling to desperately.

Flare sat on the ground, hugging her legs and resting her head on them. She felt defeated; she had lost Abbey's vessel and now, because of her the poor girl was probably being tortured. She began to cry, she just wanted to give up. On everything and just sit there, doing nothing. "I failed," she whispered to herself.

Bobby walked up to Flare, kneeling in front of her. "You just don't listen, do you?"

Flare looked up at him, her face stained with tears. "What are you going to ground me?" she asked, mockingly. "No hunting for two weeks?"

Dean bit his lip, trying not to laugh.

"Don't mock me, kid," Bobby huffed. "This isn't just some demon you were planning on going after. It was Lucifer. Do you know what that means?" He looked into her eyes, pulling to his full height. "Or do you want to get yourself killed?"

Flare looked at the ground and mumbled, "I can handle myself, Bobby."

Meanwhile, Sam looked to the ground, knitting his eyebrows in confusion. He didn't want to be here. Dean hadn't told him they were going after Flare. Desperately, he tried to look everywhere but in her eyes; or even _at_ her for that matter, his gaze ticking from the pavement to Dean to Bobby. But never to Flare.

"Not against Lucifer, you can't, you idjit!" Bobby yelled. "Not even Sam or Dean could take him on by themselves! That's why we stick together!"

Flare closed her eyes and hung her head. "I don't want you guys to get hurt," she mumbled.

Dean glanced over at Sam and frowned before he grabbed his arm and pulled him away from Bobby. "Okay, please tell me why you won't look at her!"

Sam pulled his arm away, groaning. "Come on, Dean, let me go. I really hate it when you do that. I said I didn't want to talk about it, and you said that was okay. Now, can we just drop it, for real? We need to focus on finding Jessi right now before Castiel finds out and rips you a new one."

Dean frowned again. "Fine, but when we find Jessi, you're going to tell me whats up. Deal?"

Sam nodded. "All right, Dean. Once this is over you and I can sit down and have a nice, long, chat."

Flare stood, keeping her eyes locked on the ground. "Let's just go," she mumbled, walking back the way she came, shoving past Sam and Dean, her hands clenched into fists.

Sam closed his eyes and clenched his teeth as Flare shoved him out of the way. Slowly, he let his breath out through his nose. There was no call for her bitchiness. He wasn't being mean to her. Just simply ignoring her. And he was doing it for her own good, dammit. He wasn't himself right now, and he didn't want to fuck up their relationship. So, her bitchiness was not necessary, and frankly, it pissed Sam off.

Flare glanced over at Sam and Dean as if to say sorry. She was so pissed at herself for letting Jessi get taken. But it was no reason to be mean to the few people she had left.

Dean glanced at Sam "She just needs to cool off, you know how girls are when things don't go the way they want."

Sam shook his head. "I don't even care. Let her be a bitch." He shook his head and scoffed. "I mean, I deserve it, right? I was a dick. I scratched her and told her to leave me alone. I called her a bitch and I hurt her feelings. Now, I guess she feels she's entitled to a little payback. Well, I say bring it on."

Bobby walked to the car, climbing into the back seat. He could tell Sam was in a mood and would probably not want to sit with Flare, so he would give him the chance to sit up front with Dean. After all, he seemed happiest when he was around his brother.

Flare sat in the back seat and stared out the window, and Dean sighed and climbed into the driver's seat.

Sam sulked to the passenger seat, climbing in and staring out the window. "So, what are we going to do about Jessi?" he asked, speaking to anyone who would listen.

"Well," Dean started, "we could get Cas to help."

"Not a good idea," Flare mumbled. "Maybe we should get outside help."

"Outside help?" Bobby asked. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well," Flare bit her bottom lip, "I, uh, know a few Psychics...that may be able to help find her."

"That sounds promising," Bobby answered, rolling his eyes. "I guess we could give it a shot." He looked at Flare. "Which one should we go to first?"

Flare frowned. "Well, there is one close by. Five minuets from here. Her name is Renna Milb," she said. "She took me and Abbey in a few times."

Renna knew Flare was coming even before she saw her walk through the door. She motioned to the chair opposite hers. "Please, Flare, sit." She looked at Flare and frowned. "I am so sorry about Abbey. She was a good child."

Flare nodded as she sat. "I need your help Ren," she said. "It's really important."

Renna looked at Flare. "I know what you need help with, but unfortunately, I cannot be of service to you." She closed her eyes. "But I am getting a strong reading. Yes, you must go find the man named Chuck. Chuck Shurley." She opened her eyes again. "He can help you with what you seek."

Flare smiled "Thanks Ren, I'll keep in touch," she said giving her a quick hug before she walked back to the Impala.

"Well?" Dean asked.

"She said that a man named Chuck Shurley could help us," Flare said getting into the back seat.

"Chuck?" Dean asked.

"Chuck?" Sam mimicked. No way. Not Chuck. Sam didn't want to have to deal with Chuck right now.

"Who's Chuck?" Bobby asked, confused.

"He is a prophet," Dean explained.

"Really?!" Flare gasped. "Cool!"

"Not really," Dean mumbled.

Sam sighed. "Oh boy," he chuckled. "We have to go see Chuck. I hope Castiel doesn't show up. That would be awkward."

"Oh," Bobby answered. "Well, drive fast,boy. We don't know how much time Jessi has left." Dean nodded and stepped on the gas.

"_Sam closed his eyes, falling asleep almost instantly as he was tired from the days work. As he did, he began to dream. First, hauntings of Ruby and all of their intimate moments. However, as the dream progressed, he dreamed of Lucifer. Lucifer, and all of the nasty plans he had in store for the younger hunter. Tossing and_--" Chuck's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a knock at the door. He pulled to his feet, pulling his robe closed. "Uh...c-coming!" His eyes widened and his mouth dropped open when he opened the door. "D-Dean? S-Sam? What are you guys doing here?"

"We were wondering if you could help us," Dean said, walking into the house followed by Flare.

Chuck scratched the back of his head. "Um, I don't know where Jessi is, Dean. I just know she's with Lucifer." He looked at Flare, quickly looking at the ground. "Um...h-hi, Flare." He felt his cheeks turning a crimson color, but he couldn't stop it as he nibbled on his bottom lip.

Flare flashed Chuck a smile. "Hiya, Chuck." Dean rolled his eyes.

"Hey, Chuck," Sam said, walking inside. "It's good to see you again."

Chuck smiled at Sam sympathetically. "I'm so sorry, Sam. I didn't mean for any of this stuff to happen to you. But Zachariah told me to write, so I wrote."

"It's okay, Chuck," Sam said, knitting his brows in confusion.

Flare sighed. "Damn," she mumbled. "Jessi was my last link to Abbey."

Bobby thrust his hand out. "Bobby Singer. Nice to meet you."

Chuck hesitantly took his hand. "Chuck Shurley." He turned back towards his living room. "Uh, I'm sorry you guys just walked right in on my book club."

Sam turned, his gaze following Chuck, and that's when he saw her. His eyes widened, and his mouth went dry. "Becky," he whispered to Dean, fear clear in his voice.


	12. Tell Me I'm A Freak

**CHAPTER TWELVE: TELL ME I'M A FREAK**

Dean laughed.

"Who is Becky?" Flare asked.

"Sam's number one fan," Dean managed to get out before Becky nearly knocked him over, trying to get to Sam.

She hugged him. "Sammy!"

"Oh my gosh," Flare mumbled.

Sam licked his lips as he inhaled sharply. "Becky...injured! Gash in abdomen! Hurting!"

"Oh, sorry," Becky said, pulling away. "I just can't resist."

Flare looked at Becky like a wild animal would look at prey.

Dean grabbed Flare's arm, making sure Flare was not going to kill this girl.

Sam rolled his eyes, licking his lips again. "B-Becky, we talked about this. Personal space." He took a step back, hoping that she would not follow him. He looked at Dean, hazel eyes begging his big brother for help.

"But your so cute and...firm," she said, following, touching his chest.

"Dean," Flare whispered, "if you don't want a dead body on your hands you better tighten your grip."

Dean nodded, gripping her arm tighter.

Sam chuckled. "Yeah, well...I-I work out." He cleared his throat, stepping back further. Why did she have to invade his personal space? He happened to like his personal space. In fact, he loved it. There is a bubble around him that no one should cross without his permission, and he didn't remember giving Becky permission to invade his bubble.

"So is it true? Do you really have a girlfriend?" Becky asked.

"Well, she's uh--kind of. Yeah," Sam answered, backing up farther as Becky continued to follow him. He backed up until he was pressed against the wall. No where to run. No where to hide. Trapped.

Becky turned and looked at Flare, glaring.

"Oh, my God!" a girl shrieked, running over to Dean. "Y-You're Dean." She grabbed his hand. "I'm Cassie. I love you!" She touched his face. "You are so cute. "When you were with Cassie in the books..." she leaned in so she could whisper in his ear, "...I pretended it was me."

Dean let go of Flare and smirked at the girl. "Really now?"

Cassie smiled at Dean, nodding. She reached up to touch his face again, rubbing her thumb over his bottom lip. "I dreamed what it would be like to kiss you." She looked into his eyes expectantly.

"Would you like to find out?" Dean cooed.

Her eyes widened. She nodded, a smile pulling to her lips. Wow, she was actually going to kiss Dean. Ahhhh!!!! This was so going in her journal.

Dean leaned in and kissed her.

"Becky," Sam breathed. "Could you please stop...touching me?"

"No," Becky replied.

"Becky, please?" Sam begged. "I have issues with people being this close to me." He looked into her eyes. "You're invading my bubble."

"That's it," Flare growled.

"Flare, stop," Bobby said, grabbing her elbow and holding her in place. "Sam won't do anything. You know that."

"Aww," Becky mumbled.

Sam knit his brows, confused. "What? What are you 'aww'-ing about?"

"You're just so cute," Becky said.

Sam rolled his eyes, letting his head fall back onto the wall. "Why? What did I do now?"

"I swear I am going to kill her," Flare hissed.

Bobby smiled a bit. "Just, keep your cool."

Flare took a deep breath and unclenched her fists. Then, she looked at Chuck. "Do something!" she hissed.

Cassie moaned into the kiss, wrapping her arms around Dean's neck and pulling him close to her body, wanting them to be as close as possible so she could feel every single muscle in his tight, hot little body. She opened her mouth, allowing Dean to slip his tongue inside and deepen the kiss.

Dean pulled back with a smirk on his face.

Cassie sighed. "That was--Wow." Suddenly all of the 'Dean girls' were piling around him, begging to be kissed.

Dean smiled. "One at a time ladies."

Chuck looked at the ladies. "Um...I believe the Winchester boys had something to speak with me about, ladies."  
Sam looked at Chuck then to the ladies. Hopefully they would listen to him. Sam dared a glance at Dean and rolled his eyes, seeing that Dean had already kissed four girls and was gladly moving on to his fifth. Whore.

Flare sighed. "Oh, look it's Castiel, over in that room!" she said pointing to he living room.

All of the Dean girls squealed and ran into the next room. Cassie frowned, "Hey, Castiel's not in here!" Suddenly, the door dividing them from Dean slammed shut. Bobby locked it and smiled.

Sam groaned as Becky continued to grope him. "Becky, come on. Can't you go bother Dean or something?"

Flare grabbed Becky's arm and quickly shoved her into the other room with the rest of the girls.

"Hey, I was having fun," Dean mumbled.

"Man whore," Flare said.

"Hey!"

Sam finally moved, not liking the fact that he was pinned against the wall. He hated not being in control. And ever since he had been with Ruby, the whole shoving him against a wall and pinning him there took on a whole new meaning. That's what she had always done right before she tried to seduce him with her blood to get more out of the deal.  
Chuck looked at Sam, then at Dean, then smiled at Flare. "So, what did you guys need? I have some popcorn in the other room if you're hungry."

Flare slapped her hand over Dean's mouth before he could say he wanted food, causing

Dean to frown.

"Thanks but no, we must find out how to save Jessi, so could you help us, Please"

Surprisingly, Sam's stomach growled at the mention of popcorn. "Hey Chuck, I'll take some popcorn."  
Chuck's expression lit up when Sam asked for popcorn. "Okay, I'll go get it." He scurried out of the room and started to make the popcorn.  
Sam noticed that Flare and Dean were staring at him, and he knit his brows in confusion. "What?"

Flare removed her hand from Dean's mouth. "I'm the one who asks for food," Dean said.

Flare rolled her eyes. "That's because you never think with your head, only your stomach...and, well other organs."

Dean glared at her.

"I'm hungry," Sam countered. "Sue me." He rolled his eyes, walking over to the table which had Chuck's most recent piece of literature spread out. He read some of the pages, his mind going back to the forest where he had practically lost his mind. When he heard Chuck walk back into the room, he turned to him, tears in his eyes. "What's happening to me?"  
Chuck looked at him sympathetically. "Honestly, Sam, I believe it's withdrawl." He walked over to Sam, slapping Dean's hand away from the popcorn bowl as he did. "This is all part of her plan."  
Sam looked at Chuck in utter confusion. "Her plan? Whose? Ruby?"  
Chuck shook his head. "No, Lilith."

Flare sat on the couch and sighed. "I blew it," she said quietly. "I lost the girl." She shook her head.

Sam stole a glance at Flare as she spoke. This wasn't her fault. It was Castiel's. He never should have trusted Dean to watch this girl. With as much time as they spent together, Castiel should have known that Dean was a screw up when Sam wasn't around. And in Sam's current condition, it was just like he wasn't around.

Finally, he looked back at Chuck. "Lilith? What does she have to do with this?"

Chuck's expression softened. "She wanted you to be an addict. She thought..." he trailed off, looking over at Dean before turning his attention back to Sam. "She thought that it would tear you and your brother apart. And that would make her ultimate plan easier because you're vulnerable when Dean's not with you.."

"Wh-What's her ultimate plan?"

"I don't know, Sam. I haven't seen that far."

Sam hung his head in defeat. "What should I do?"

Chuck looked at Dean again. "Stay with your brother."

Dean walked over to Sam and Chuck. "She is really broken up about losing Jessi," he said, dropping his voice so only Sam and Chuck could hear him.

"She'll get over it," Sam said, allowing everything Chuck had said to set in. He didn't want to be some pawn in Lilith's little game. Even after he killed her, he couldn't get away from the bitch. He looked up at Dean. "Dean, I'm still addicted to demon blood," he said. He needed to see Dean's reaction when he found out. He needed to see how much Dean hated him for his weakness.

Dean placed his hand on his brother's shoulder reassuringly. "Don't worry, Sammy."

Sam shrugged Dean's hand off of him. "Don't worry?!" He pushed Dean away, standing as he did. "How am I not supposed to worry, Dean? I want demon blood! I'm addicted to the shit! How can I not worry about that?!" He pushed Dean again, just needing the contact. "And Lilith had this all planned out from the beginning! I'm loosing it, Dean!" Again, another hard shove. "I'm even more of a freak than I was when this all started!" He couldn't stand the fact that Dean wasn't shoving back, so he did something he thought Dean would respond to; punched him, hard, square in the jaw.

Chuck jumped out of his seat with a yelp. "Guys, please don't fight in my house," he begged. "I just got the walls redone after the whole Angel business."

Flare quickly stood, running over to Sam and Dean. Just as Sam was about to punch Dean again, she got in the way getting punched herself. "Ow," she hissed as blood trickled down from her nose/ "Is that the best you can do?" she asked, hoping Sam would take out his aggression on her instead of his brother.

Sam glared at Flare. What the hell was she doing?! "Flare, get out of here. This has nothing to do with you!" He pushed her away, turning his attention back to his brother. "Come on, Dean!" he yelled, throwing his hands out to his side. "Fight back! Why are you just standing there taking it like a little bitch?!" He hit him again. "Fight back, dammit!"

"Your my brother dammit!" Dean said. "I won't fight you!"

"I will," Flare growled. "Come on, your not mad at Dean, you are mad at yourself!"

"Get the hell away from me, Flare!" Sam yelled, turning his attention back to Dean. "I want you to say it, Dean, Tell me how much of a freak I am. Tell me how disappointed you are in me. Tell me how you can't trust me anymore!" He pushed past Flare, grabbing Dean by his jacket and slamming him into the wall. "Say it, dammit!"

Suddenly, Castiel appeared behind Sam. "What is going on here?!" he demanded.


	13. Hunting Lucifer

**A/N: **Sorry for the delay on this folks, I hope the awesomeness makes up for it.

___________________________________________________________________________________

**CHAPTER THIRTEEN: HUNTING LUCIFER**

"Let me go, Sammy," Dean warned.

"No, Dean!" Sam yelled. "Say it! I know you want to! Just say it! Tell me how you really feel!"

"You really want me to lie to you, Sammy?"

"It's not a lie, Dean," Sam breathed, his anger leaving him a rush. "You already told me you can't trust me. Just admit it. You think I'm a freak. I know I am." He fought back the tears that were threatening to fall.

"Fine, you're a freak. So what? That doesn't mean I hate you."

Sam pulled back. He had wanted Dean to tell him he was a freak, but he hadn't expected it to hurt so badly. He hung his head. "I'm so sorry, Dean."  
"It's okay," Dean grumbled, turning his attention to Castiel.

Flare stood by Bobby. "I think I'll pack up my things and leave," she mumbled.

Bobby turned on her. "Don't say that shit, kid!" he boomed. "Do you know what that would do to Sammy? He's already in a shit state and you want to leave and make it worse? What's going on in that head of yours?!"

"I just don't think Sam really cares about me anymore," Flare said quietly.

Bobby put his hand on Flare's shoulder. "Don't leave. He'll get better."

"You sure?" she asked.

"No," Bobby answered. "But we can't just give up on him. We have to have faith that he'll be okay."

Flare bit her bottom lip, nodding.

Castiel walked to Dean. "Dean, what was going on here?"

"Flare lost Jessi," Dean explained.

Castiel cocked his head. "_Flare_ lost Jessi?" he asked, his tone harsh. "Flare was not supposed to watch Jessi, Dean. You were."

Dean winced "But she attacked me, got me down. Flare went after her and let her get taken...by..."

"By who?" Castiel asked, glaring at Dean. "Dean, who took Jessi?"

"Lucifer," Dean mumbled.

One of the light bulbs in Chuck's living room blew out, shattering all over the room. "You let Lucifer get the vessel?!" Castiel asked, horrified. "Why would let that happen?!" He put his hand up to Dean's mouth as he was about to speak. "And if you say Flare did, I will smite you right here."

"Cas, don't blame Dean. He is right. I am the one who lost her," Flare said, walking over to him. "I am sorry. I know sorry doesn't cut it but I truly am."

Castiel turned his attention on Flare. He didn't understand why this creature thought she had the right to speak to him. "Who do you think you are?" he asked bitterly. "Dean was supposed to be watching the girl. You are not a part of this. Stop trying to interfere." He looked at Dean before looking back at Flare. "You have no idea what you have just done!" he said to both of them, scowling. Before they had the chance to answer, he was gone.

Chuck stood in the corner of his house, mesmerized. "Was that Castiel? I-I thought he was dead."

Dean glanced at Chuck before explaining why Castiel was alive.

Flare looked at the ground, staying silent before she quickly ran out of the house.

Bobby ran out after Flare. "Flare, wait, stop!" he said, grabbing her arm and turning her to face him.

"The way Cas looked at me...like I was a monster. Like I shouldn't be here..." Flare pulled her arm away. "And he is right. I shouldn't be here," she said as tears started rolling down her cheeks. "I'm not human, so why should I live with them...and why did I fall in love with one? When I lived in my home land everyone told me I was forbidden to fall in love with a human."

"Well, Sam's different. It's understandable that you would fall for him."

"I don't belong here. Even you know that. Maybe Sammy and I...don't belong with each other either."

"Fine," Bobby answered. "Then go. I'm done trying to stop you." He turned and walked back into the house, shaking his head.

Sam hadn't really been paying attention. He was tired. So tired. His head was throbbing and he just wanted to pass out. Slowly, he turned back towards the table, seeing a bottle of Jack Daniels. Picking up the bottle, he took a long pull of the intoxicating liquid. It burned going down, but he didn't care. As he sat down in the chair he had been sitting in earlier, he took another long swig, sighing in approval as he swallowed and the burn filled his throat once again. Slowly, he plucked a piece of popcorn from the bowl and began to eat it, chasing it with another long drink.

Chuck glared at Sam as he drank his precious booze. He crossed his arms over his chest, looking at Dean again as he continued to explain the whole angel situation. "Uh, Dean...Sam's drinking my Jack Daniels. It's my last bottle and he's going to finish it. I'd stop him, but...I'm afraid he'll hit me."

Dean gently took the bottle out of Sam's hands. "I don't need you getting drunk. Remember last time?"

Sam moaned his protest. "Dean, give it back. You're not my boss. I can get drunk if I want to. And I want to." He reached for the bottle, desperately trying to get it from Dean's grasp. "Come on, you dick! Give it back."

"I'll get you another bottle," Dean said to Chuck, handing Sam the bottle again.

Sam gladly took the bottle from Dean again, taking another long swig. Damn, that burn felt good. Again, he took another swig, followed by another, and yet another, sighing as the amber liquid slid down his throat, leaving a burning sensation in it's wake. Suddenly, the bottle was ripped from his grasp again, and he moaned in protest. "Give...back," he demanded, grabbing at the air.

Bobby slapped Dean in the back of the head. "What are you letting him do, you idjit?!"

"Ouch, sorry...just letting him drink his problems away. It always works for me," Dean explained.

Bobby shoved the bottle at Dean. "He's not you! You know how he gets when he's drunk!" Bobby rolled his eyes and walked away.

Meanwhile, Sam stood, stumbling over to Dean. He was staring at him, like he was fascinated with him for some reason.

Dean looked at him, confused. "Um, what?" he asked.

Flare sighed and walked back into Chuck's house, looking over at Sam. "Is he drunk?" she asked Bobby.

"Yeah," Bobby answered. "I came back in and saw Dean handing him the bottle of Jack."

"You have huge breasts," Sam answered, reaching his hands out and latching them on to Dean's pectorals and groping. "And they're firm, too." He looked up at Dean, then, smiling. "You're nipples are perky."

Dean backed away, standing behind Flare and Bobby. "Dude," he said, "just sit down."

Flare rolled her eyes "Come on, Sam, you should lay down," she said, holding her hand out to him.

Bobby looked back at Dean. "Don't hide behind me, boy. I told you not to get him drunk."

"I don't want to lay down," Sam protested. "I've been laying down for the past two days. Not tired." He stumbled back over to the table, tripping a little as he did. He caught himself on the table, hissing in pain as his abdomen slammed into the edge of it. "Fuck!" he yelled, throwing his hand against his wound. When he pulled his hand away, it was coated with blood. "Dean, I'm fucking bleeding!"

"Sam, watch your mouth," Bobby ordered, walking out of the house.

"I am going to kill you, Dean," Flare growled before she turned to Chuck. "Could you grab medical supplies so I can fix him up?" She turned back to Sam. "Can I take a look at that, please?" she asked.

Chuck quickly walked to his bathroom, returning shortly after with band-aids. He held them up helpfully, a small smile on his face.

Sam shook his head. "No, I'm fine. Just hurts." He sat back down on the chair that had become his once they got there, grabbing more popcorn. "Hey, Dean, gimme that bottle back. Thirsty."

"No, Sammy, it's empty, see?" Dean said, dumping the bottle.

"Thanks, Chuck," Flare said, gently taking the band-aids with a small smile. "Just let me change the bandages, please?"

"No," Sam said, jerking away. "Just leave me alone." Damn, why did she always have to want to change his bandages. He was fine. Okay, he wasn't fine. He was drunk and bleeding, but he didn't want help. He just wanted to sleep. He lay his head on the table. "Tired."

Flare grabbed one of the couch pillows and put it under his head. "Then sleep," she whispered.

Sam snuggled against the pillow, closing his eyes. "Dean...don't leave, okay? Chuck says...Chuck says..." Sam was asleep before he could finish his sentence.

Flare quickly patched him up before she sat down next to him.

Chuck looked at Dean. He knew it was a matter of time before he asked him what Sam had been talking about. And he was ready to run right there. Talking to Sam was easier than talking to Dean. Sam didn't scare him like Dean did.

"What was he trying to say, Chuck?" Dean asked, crossing his arms.

"He, um, was trying to say..." Chuck started, shifting uncomfortably beneath Dean's stare. "He was trying to say that you should stay here because he's...vulnerable without you."

Dean looked at the ground. "Oh," he mumbled before glancing at Flare. He looked back at Chuck. "So, do you know what's up with Flare and Sam?" he asked quietly.

Chuck wouldn't look at Dean. He was scared. There was no way he was going to expose Sam's personal feelings with Dean. And for that, he figured Dean would hit him, so he kept his head down, not wanting Dean to have access to his face. "I-I-I don't think I can tell you that, Dean. I think you should ask either Sam or Flare."

"Chuck, I already asked Sam, and by the looks of it I don't think Flare understands why he is pushing her away. I mean, look at her."

Chuck looked at Flare, noticing that she was stroking Sam's hair, a look of total sadness on her face. He knew she could tell Sam was pushing her away. He looked back at Dean, still scared as he wrapped his arms around himself. "I'm sorry, Dean, but if Sam doesn't tell you, maybe he doesn't want you to know. And I don't want to go against Sam's wishes." Chuck had tried to be strong, but now he was bracing himself and waiting for the pain that he figured was about to come.

Dean sighed. "Come on Chuck, I won't tell him that you told me."

Chuck looked at the ground. "I'm sorry, Dean. I can't."  
Suddenly, Sam began to toss and turn. The images in his head were almost unbearable. But not like the images that he usually saw when he was asleep; these were worse. "No," he whispered, gritting his teeth. "Stop it, please. She's-She's just a little girl."

Dean looked over at Sam, concerned.

Flare lightly shook Sam. "Hey, Sammy, wake up."

Sam jerked awake, falling out of his chair as he did. He looked up at Dean, tears in his eyes. "Dean...I know where Jessi is."

Dean pulled his little brother to his feet "Where, Sammy? Where?"

Sam gripped his brother's arms tightly, holding on to him as though he were the only thing keeping him grounded. And truthfully, he was. "Uh, she's in warehouse in Philadelphia." He closed his eyes tightly, tightening his hold on Dean until his fingers were digging into his brother's skin with bruising force. "Lucifer has her, Dean. I...felt what she felt. Saw...what she saw." He looked into Dean's eyes. "Oh, God, Dean, it's terrible. We have to help her. Dean, we have to."

Dean nodded. "Lets go."

"I'll go on a head," Flare offered.

"Flare," Dean growled.

Castiel appeared in front of Flare, his expression hard and emotionless. "You are not a part of this," he snapped, touching her forehead with his fingers, causing her to pass out. He then looked at Dean. "Hurry, Dean, you and Sam do not have much time. Lucifer needs to be stopped."

"Cas, Flare is a part of this," Dean growled, kneeling down next to her. "Dammit, wake her up, we need all the help we can get."

Castiel shook his head. "No, you have all you need right beside you. Sam is the only thing you need to help you, Dean. She is not a part of this. Just Sam. Now go!" Castiel then disappeared, leaving Sam and Dean to stare at the empty spot where he had just been, shocked.

Dean looked down at Flare. "Hey, could we keep Flare here for a bit?" Dean asked Chuck. Before he could answer, Dean said, "Sam, put her on the couch, I'll get the car started." With that he left.

Sam picked Flare up and lay her on the couch. He gave a nod to Chuck, as if saying thanks, before he ran to the Impala. He climbed into the passenger seat and looked at Dean. "Let's go," he ordered. "Gun it!"

Dean did as he was told.

_There were trees all around her, the smell of smoke filled the air. Smoke from her old house. The forest seemed dark and evil, the air cold and the ground damp. Flare looked down at Abbey who was sitting on the ground with her back resting against a tree. "Come on, Abbs, we should keep moving," she said gently._

_Abbey couldn't move. She was glued to the spot. "No, Mommy and Daddy will be back." She looked up at her sister with tear stained cheeks. "What if they can't find us when they come back? Because we moved. Mommy always said to stay put when we got lost. I wanna stay put and wait."_

_Flare kneeled down in front of her little sister. "Abbs, Mommy and Daddy," she bit her bottom lip, "they, went way for a little bit. They got out of the fire and when you were sleeping mom came to me and told me they were going on a trip...and left me in charge of you...s-so," Flare sniffed, "we will see them again...some day."_

_Tears ran down Flare's cheeks. She had her back to Abbey as they ran, so she could not see them. "You are going to be okay Abbey. I'll keep you safe. I won't let anything hurt you," she said quietly._

_When Flare turned to look at her, Abbey ran her fingers along Flare's cheeks. "Why are you crying, sissy? Mommy and Daddy will be back soon. You said they were on a trip. No trip lasts more than a week. I heard it on the TV."_

_"It's a longer tip, Abbey. They will be gone for a few years...but don't worry...I'll keep you safe."_

_Abbey nodded, letting her sister know that she trusted her completely._

Flare tossed and turned, rolling off the couch and landing on the floor with a THUMP. She shot up, breathing heavily.

"F-Flare, you're awake," Chuck said, handing her a glass of water. "Dean and Sam left. They told me to watch you. D-Do you need anything?"

She took the water "T-they left? Are they dumb? H-he is going to kill them!" she said, taking a sip. "I-I must go help them, I-I can't lose them, I would rather die myself then to let them get hurt."

"Uh, Flare, you can't leave." Chuck said running after her. "They told me to keep you here."

"Do you know it they are going to be okay?" she asked. "Will they make it?"

Chuck looked at the ground, shaking his head. "I haven't seen that far ahead yet."

"Please, try the best you can, okay? I need to know it they are going to be safe. Please?" Flare begged. "I know that you don't chose when these things come to you but--" tears formed behind her eyes.

Again, Chuck shook his head. "It doesn't work that way. I can't just concentrate and make something come to me. I don't know what's going to happen to them out there. All I know is we can't leave."

Flare sighed. "I want to help." She sat back down on the couch, holding her head in her hands. "I don't want to lose them,Chuck."

Chuck sat on the couch next to her, placing his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure they'll be fine. I mean, they took on Azazel and they survived. And Dean survived Hell. They'll be fine. No need to worry."

"This is not just a demon, Chuck, it's the devil! And I'm not allowed to help because I'm not any part of this. That's what Cas says." Her golden eyes flicked over to Chuck for a brief second then back at the ground.

"Yeah," Chuck mumbled. "Castiel has this mind set where Dean and only Dean can stop this. Like Dean's the only person in the universe who deserves respect. I guess that's why he locked us in here." He rolled his eyes. "Because we're not Dean. The Great, Magnificent and Powerful Dean." Chuck's voice dripped with jealousy as he praised Dean.

"Well, just this week I was attacked for being a descendant of an all powerful warrior from the past, and believe me it's not fun being a VIP," she said, wincing as she remembered the pain she felt when Taock was taking her life force.

Chuck looked at her, a little insulted. "I know that. I wrote it." He straightened up. "But what does that have to do with Castiel?"

Flare shook her head. "It's more about Dean. I pity him," she mumbled before changing the subject. "Do you know whats up with Sammy? He has been acting strange around me."

Chuck bit his lip before shaking his head. "No, I-I don't know why he's being so weird. Dean was asking the same thing. I-I-I have no idea."

Flare gave Chuck a small smile. "How long have they been gone?"

"About an hour." He moved his head so that he could see his clock a little better. "Or, you know, three."

"Three-Three hours? How do you know there not dead?" she asked, standing up.

"Oh, Sam called about twenty minutes ago. He told me not to worry."

Flare let out a sigh of relief. "Where were they when they called?"

"He didn't say," Chuck replied sadly. "But I'm sure they're close. I mean, they've been gone for a long while."

Flare glanced at Chuck. "Does he still love me?" she asked, biting her bottom lip.

Chuck bit his bottom lip and stood, turning away from Flare. "I can't tell you Sam's feelings," he explained. "It would make me feel like I'm betraying him. What I can tell you, though is that right now, he only cares about being with his brother. He feels less vulnerable when he's with Dean because in his mind, Dean is his hero. The great protector of Sam." Chuck turned back to Flare and smiled. "Dean would never let Sam get hurt."

Flare looked at the ground. "But neither would I," she mumbled. "I would protect him with my life."

Chuck gave her a sympathetic look. "I know, but Sam's just in a really dark place right now. His head's all jumbled."

Flare looked back up at Chuck. "Should I leave?"

"I don't know, Flare." Chuck sat back down. "I don't have all of the answers. I wish I did, but I don't."

Flare took her necklace off and handed it to him. "Give this to him. Tell him I'll be just a phone call away if he needs me."

Chuck nodded, giving her a small smile. "I will. But you can't leave right now." Chuck stood up and walked to the door, trying the knob. "Castiel has us locked in here so we can't go after Sam and Dean."

Flare sighed. "Castiel, I won't go after Sam and Dean. I'm done. I'm leaving. And if I go after them, then you could do whatever you want t-to me. -I just need to leave, please?!" she yelled.

Castiel appeared in Chuck's living room then, his expression hard. "I do not trust you. You must stay here until this is all finished."

"I'm not going to do anything, Cas, and why don't you trust me?! I helped Sam and Dean out of tough spots!"

Castiel cocked his head. "I do not trust anyone," he explained. "The only human that I trust is Dean because he does not let me down." He looked at the ground. "Until now." Again, he looked at Flare. "But he will fix it."

"But I'm not human!" Flare said. "And as you say, I'm not a part of this, so let me go." She looked him, straight in the eyes, gold clashing with ice blue. "I know you dislike me, so why won't you let me leave?"

"No one leaves this house until Sam and Dean return," he stated coldly, the light bulb beside Flare smashing. "I must go. Sam and Dean need my assistance"

Chuck looked at Flare once Castiel was gone. "I really wish you wouldn't make him mad," he complained. "Light bulbs are not cheap, these days."

Flare started to pace, she felt trapped and she didn't like to feel that way. She punched the wall, hard, causing her knuckles to bleed. "Stupid Castiel," she hissed.

Chuck jumped as she hit his wall. Luckily, she didn't punch the whole way through. He really didn't need his house in ruins again. "You know, maybe you should sit down. Sam still has his cell, you can call him."

Flare shook her head. "H-He won't talk to me."

"You never know. He might." He looked at her, smiling. "Who are you going to believe? Yur own doubt, or the prophet?"

Flare gave Chuck a small smile before pulling her cell phone out and calling Sam.

Sam jerked awake at the sound of his phone ringing. He looked at the caller I.D. seeing that it was Flare. Slowly, he thrust his phone at Dean. "She probably just wants to talk to you and couldn't get a hold of you. She doesn't want to talk to me." He hung his head. "She's mad at me."

Dean answered the phone. "Hello?"

"Dean...is Sam there?" Flare asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"I need to talk to him."

"Got it," Dean said handing the phone to Sam. "She wants to talk to you."

Sam looked at the phone, frowning. He looked up at Dean, searching his eyes for support. Reluctantly, he took the phone from his hands. "H-Hello?"

"It's good to hear your voice," Flare said, letting out a sigh of relief. "I was so worried about you guys."

Sam frowned. "Oh, we're okay." He looked back at Dean. "We haven't gotten there yet, we're still about twenty minutes out. Dean tried to call Cas, but he's not coming." He put his hand on his neck and massaged the aching muscles. "I think he hates me."

"He hates me, too," Flare mumbled. "But who needs him, anyway?"

"We do," Sam answered. "He's our best bet at killing Lucifer. Well, unless Dean wants to invite Michael to take over his body and I don't see that happening any time soon."

Flare nodded. "True," she mumbled. "I still can't believe he knocked me out," she complained, rubbing the back of her head. "Everything is still a little hazy."

Sam chuckled a bit. "Yeah, he does that a lot. It's one of his favorite things to do when you make him mad."

"He could have given me three strikes before he called out," She joked.

"Yeah," Flare said, continuing to rub the back of her head. "Sammy...I'm sorry for being a jerk to you."

Sam rubbed the back of his neck. "It's okay." He really didn't know what else to say to that.

"Just be careful," she said. "I'll see you soon."

Sam smiled softly. He knew she couldn't see it, but at least she might hear it a little in his voice. "Don't worry. We will."

"I love you," Flare said quietly. "So at the first sign of any big danger, get out of there."

Sam saw the warehouse they were going to, and he hit Dean's arm lightly, letting him know this was the place. "Uh, Flare, I gotta go. I'll see you when we get back." Sam hung up the phone, looking at Dean. "Are you ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Dean mumbled. "You?"

Sam let out a deep breath. "I guess." He looked at Dean again. "Dean, just in case we don't make it out of this alive, I just wanted you to know that I'm sorry. About all of this. I know it's my fault. And I don't want to die knowing that you hate me because I brought on the end of the world." A tear fell from Sam's eye as he spoke.

Dean looked at his little brother and gave him a small smile. "And I'm sorry for being a dick."

Flare started to pace again, her heart full of fear for Sam and Dean.

Sam gave him a small smile. "So, do you think Castiel's in there waiting for us?"

"Don't know," Dean mumbled. "I hope so."

Flare sighed and walked over to the window that had a bird perching on it. "Hey, you," she whispered to the little bird. "There is a pack of wolves in a forest 3 hours away from here, please get them and tell them to help the Winchesters."

The bird chirped before flying away.

Flare turned and looked at Chuck "Cas said I can't help, he said nothing about wolves."

Castiel came up behind Dean and Sam, looking at both of them with his grim expression. "We must hurry. Jessi is in there, and it doesn't sound good. I could not get in to see what was going on without blowing our cover, but I can feel it. It's bad."

"Are there demons in there?" he asked as he loaded his gun.

The wolves hid in the forest, waiting for the angel to leave.

Castiel looked at Dean as though he had just asked him how to tie his shoe. "Yes, Dean. Demons are there. They are assisting in the torture." He turned to look at Sam. "Do not be afraid that you will give in to the demon blood. If you are thinking about that, you will be distracted, and Dean needs you to watch his back."  
Sam nodded, his lips pressed in a tight line. Don't be worried about giving in to his addiction? Fine. That's easy. Yeah, right.

Dean handed Sam a gun and Ruby's knife. "Ready?" he asked him.

Sam bit his bottom lip, taking a deep breath and letting it out through his nose. Slowly, he nodded, giving Dean a small smile as he took the weapons Dean was offering him. Oh God, was he going to be able to do this? What if the blood was overpowering and he couldn't resist. No. He had to resist. He couldn't let Dean down. Not again.

"Then lets go," Dean said as he cocked the gun.

That was when they knew it was time to take action. All five wolves jumped out of the bushes, one sniffing the air, catching Flare's sent off the boys. It looked back at the other four who were snarling. Once the head wolf looked at them they stood down, looking at the Winchesters, waiting for them to go.

"What the hell?" Dean mumbled.

Sam sighed shaking his head. "Flare."  
Castiel rolled his eyes. Yeah, he had learned that move from Dean. "I told her not to interfere."  
Sam looked at him. "I guess she didn't listen."

"Well, I guess we got the back up I wanted," Dean said. "Um, dogs, go cause a distraction."

The head wolf looked like it nodded before it turned to the rest of the wolves, running towards the warehouse and crashing through the windows, snarling.

Sam watched as the wolves crashed through the windows. The smell of blood almost made him gag. He bit his lip, looking over to Dean for direction.  
Castiel looked at Dean. "Do not try to be a hero, Dean. If you die, I will be greatly saddened."

Dean nodded. "Lets go Sammy," Dean said, grabbing his arm and starting to run towards the warehouse.

Sam was reluctant to go, which caused his brain to shut down. Dean could pull on him all he wanted, but he wasn't going to move. The wolves must have injured one of the demons because now Sam could smell demon blood. It sang to him as he tried desperately to ignore it. His body began to shake and he bit his bottom lip hard. Closing his eyes tightly, tears began to stream down his face as he fought with his body to stay still. To not go in there and feast on the blood that he was craving.

Dean turned to look at Sam. "Sammy, you can do this, you can fight this craving. I know you're strong enough, so just try."

One of the wolves bit down on one of the demon's legs but was quickly kicked off, hitting the wall with a loud yelp.

Sam glanced at Dean, more tears spilling from his eyes. Finally, Sam slowly nodded, motioning for Dean to lead the way. He wasn't sure that he could do this, but he knew Dean would protect him if it was necessary.


	14. Saying Goodbye

**CHAPTER FOURTEEN: SAYING GOODBYE**

The wolves were gnawing at one of the demons, ripping flesh from bone. This was the third demon they had taken down.

"I need you now, little brother," Dean mumbled. "I'll be right there with you, I'll make sure you don't...drink."

Sam ran after his brother, his mind anywhere but here. Once he was in the warehouse, the stink of blood made him want to vomit. He watched as the wolves tore apart demons, one by one. The thought alone was enough to make him double over. He looked over at Dean, giving him a small, strained smile. Then, he saw the door. "Dean..." he breathed, pointing to the door that he knew would lead them to Jessi.

Dean nodded, running towards the door.

The head wolf kept his eyes on Sam, making sure he was going to follow Dean.

Sam followed Dean to the door, quickly following him inside once it was open. He snapped his head back to the door as it slammed closed behind them. His jaw almost dropped to the floor when he saw Jessi. She was covered in blood, her eyes barely open. She had small cuts all over her body, as well as some deeper gashes. She looked like she was dead, but Sam could tell she wasn't as he watched her chest move up and down, slowly. She was barely hanging on.  
Lucifer looked up from Jessi's body, smiling as he saw Sam and Dean. "Dean...Sam. How nice of you to join us." His smile faded, replaced by a scowl as he whipped his hand to the side, flinging Dean into the wall and pinning him there.  
"Dean!" Sam yelled. He went to rush Lucifer, but he was grabbed from behind, and shoved into a wall.. He struggled as the demon pinned him there. "No!" he cried as he watched the demon slice it's wrist. "No! No! No!" He began to thrash his head from side to side as the demon moved it's arm closer to him. "No! Dean!" Tears streamed down Sam's face as the demon grabbed his jaw, holding his head in place as it pried Sam's mouth open. He cried loudly, screaming as the demon pressed it's arm to his parted lips, the blood instantly pooling into his mouth.

"Sammy, don't swallow! Fight it, Sammy! Fight it, Goddammit!" Dean yelled as he struggled to move. "Let me go, you bastard!" Dean hissed.

Hearing Dean's voice only made Sam cry harder. There was no way he was getting out of this without drinking, and Dean would be there to see it all. He felt so dirty as he closed his eyes and tried again to move his head.  
"Drink, Sammy,' Lucifer coaxed. "It's what you want. It'll make you stronger again. Powerful. Do it."  
Finally, Sam gathered enough strength to push the demon away from him, causing it to hit the ground. He spit and ran his hand across his mouth to get the taste of blood away from him. "Fuck you!" Sam yelled at Lucifer. "I won't do it! And you can't make me!" Lucifer smiled. "Think again."  
Suddenly, Sam was tackled, his mouth pried open once again as the demon held it's wrist over his mouth, the blood dripping inside. The demon then covered Sam's mouth and nose, forcing him to swallow when he needed to breathe. Once Sam had swallowed, the demon got off of him, looking to Lucifer for direction.  
"See Sammy, was that so bad?" Lucifer asked, watching Sam as he rolled onto his side, sobbing and wiping the blood from his lips again.

"You son of a bitch!" Dean yelled. "You touch him again and I swear I'll kill you!"

"Dean, I'm sorry," Sam cried. "I'm so sorry. God, I didn't want to, I swear!" He took a deep breath as he continued to sob, curling himself into a ball as though he were a small child being abused. "Couldn't breathe. Needed to get away!"  
Lucifer smiled, listening to Sam cry. He then looked up at Dean. "Go ahead, Dean. Tell your brother how disgusting he is. How the thought of him drinking the demon blood makes you sick to your stomach. Tell him, Dean!"

Dean spit in his face. "Go back to Hell, you son of a bitch," he hissed.

"Sorry, been there, done that," Lucifer said, walking over to Sam. He dropped to his knee, his hand resting on Sam's shoulder. "Sammy, how do you feel?  
Sam flinched away from Lucifer's touch. "Please, leave me alone. Just...leave me alone. I don't want to be your vessel." Finally, he looked up at Lucifer. "And I will _never_ say yes."  
Lucifer looked up at Dean, smiling. "Oh, yes, you will, Sammy."  
"Don't call me that!" Sam ground out. "Dean's the only who gets to call me that!"  
"Sam, how would you feel if Dean died?" Lucifer asked, standing.  
Sam looked into Lucifer's eyes, breathing heavily. "You wouldn't!"  
"Don't test me, Sam." Lucifer looked over at Dean, his eyes locking with Dean's green orbs. "What do you think, Dean? You want stomach cancer again. Only, I won't be as nice as Zachariah. Castiel doesn't scare me."

Dean growled. _Cas!_ Dean yelled in his head. _Help!_

Castiel looked around the room of the warehouse he was in, dead demons lying all around him. He had killed them all with one small flick of his wrist. Well, all the ones that the wolves hadn't taken care of. He then looked at the wolves, glaring at them as if telling them to leave.

The head wolf looked Castiel in the eyes before he jumped out the window it came through, the others following.

Castiel watched as the wolves exited the warehouse. Again, he looked at the ground, finally closing his eyes. He reached out his mind, seeing if Chuck and Flare were where they were supposed to be. They were. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open. "Dean!" he yelled, running to the door that Sam and Dean lie behind. He beat the door with his palm, knocking it off it's hinges. "Get away from him!" Castiel ordered.  
"Cas," Lucifer smiled, "how nice of you to join us."  
"Don't call me that!" Castiel spat. "Only Dean can call me that!"  
Lucifer chuckled, looking back at Dean. "Hmm...you must be special. All these nicknames you're allowed to give. Maybe you should be my vessel instead of your whimpering little brother over there." He took another step towards Jessi. "I mean, after all, you're stronger, a better hunter, and a lot more fun to be around." He picked up the knife he had been using earlier. "But you're missing one small ingredient for me."

Dean glanced at Cas, then looked at Sam, as if saying_ Help him not me! _

Castiel wasn't about to listen to Dean while he was pinned against the wall, helpless. He ran at Lucifer, tackling him to the ground, breaking his hold on Dean. Castiel screamed in pain as the knife Lucifer was holding thrust into his shoulder, going the whole way through.

Dean ran over to Sam and kneeled next to him. "Sammy, stand up," he said, pulling him to his feet. He glanced over at Cas. "Sam, we need to get you out of here. Come on."

Sam flinched as Dean touched him, not wanting to be hurt again. However, when he saw that it was Dean, he allowed him to pull him to his feet and help him to the car. Once Sam was in the passenger seat, he curled up into a ball, pulling his knees into his chest and resting his head on them. He sobbed into his knees, dampening the denim.  
"Sorry, Dean," he cried. "So sorry." He continued to repeat those words as his body wracked with sobs.

Dean nodded. "It's okay, Sammy," he said calmly. "I'll be right back." He ran back into the warehouse and quickly started to unbind Jessi. He glanced over at Castiel before he continued to untie Jessi.

Castiel walked over to Dean and still his motions. "Dean, she is gone. We cannot help her, now."

"Dammit!" Dean yelled, his voice full of defeat. Dean shook his head and walked out, heading to the Impala, back to Sam.

Sam continued to sob quietly as he sat in the fetal position in the car. He needed Dean to come back. He didn't want to be alone right now.  
Sam sniffled, looking around the parking lot. He felt dirty. He needed to brush his teeth. "Dean!" he yelled, hoping he would hear him. He needed his brother right now. Needed his big protector. The one who would help him through this. Although he knew Dean probably wouldn't allow it, he wanted to curl up in his brother's arms and cry until he was unable to produce more tears. He was defeated.

Dean got into the car, then. "You okay, Sammy?"

Sam looked over at Dean. Slowly, he shook his head, biting his bottom lip. "No," he whispered, his voice heavy with tears. "I feel sick. Dirty." He looked away from Dean, another tear running down his face. "I drank demon blood, Dean."

Dean hugged his little brother. "Everything is going to be okay. You hear me, Sammy? We will get through this and kill that son of a bitch."

Sam wrapped his arms around Dean's neck and clung to him like there was nothing else to live for. Sobs continued to wrack his frame and he just wanted to disappear as he sloshed saliva around in his mouth, still able to taste the blood of the demon. God, he had given in. He had drank the blood. He should have fought harder, been more alert so he couldn't have been attacked.

"You will be okay, Sammy, I promise. I'll never let anything like this happen to you again," Dean assured him, tightening his hold.

After a while, Sam finally stilled, but he wouldn't let go of Dean. No. He was going to hold on to his brother until Dean pushed him away. Chuck was right. When Sam wasn't with Dean, he was vulnerable. And Sam was beginning to realize that when he wasn't touching Dean, bad things happened. Like being attacked and forced to drink demon blood.

"Lets get going, Sammy," Dean said, lightly pushing Sam away.

Sam didn't want to let go. "No, Dean, don't," he cried, holding him tighter. "Don't want to let go. Bad things happen when I let go." He closed his eyes, tightening his grip on Dean once again. "I get hurt."

"Sammy, nothing is going to happen to you, "Dean assured him. "I'll keep you safe."

Sam sniffled. Like he hadn't heard that before. Dean had told him he was going to keep him safe when they went after Lucifer and look what happened. But he knew they had to get out of here. Slowly, he pulled away from Dean, sitting as close as possible, slipping his arm under Dean's and holding his bicep. "Okay," he whispered. "I'm not moving anymore."

Dean nodded before taking off. And it took all of his strength not to roll his eyes at the way his brother was clinging to him.

Flare tried the door and it opened. She looked back at Chuck before she grabbed her stuff. "Well, bye," she mumbled. "Remember to give that to Sammy." She sighed. "Give me a call if...Sam and Dean need my help."

Chuck nodded. "Okay, Flare, i will." He sniffled a bit as a tear escaped his eye.

Flare turned around and looked at him. "What is it? Why are you crying?"

"I don't want you to leave," Chuck answered, sniffling once again.

"Chuck, I'm sorry, but I must. I'll be in New York, taking jobs there. Don't tell Sam and Dean," she said before she threw her bag over her shoulder and walked out.

Chuck gave her a small smile. "You have my number. Call me?"

Flare nodded. "Will do," she said before she shut the door behind her. She pull on her black hoodie and started out into the night.

After about an hour of being in the car, Sam had fallen asleep, his head resting on Dean's shoulder.

"This is an odd sight," Castiel announced as he sat in the passenger seat, looking at Dean. "You do not usually let him get this close to you. You don't usually let anyone get this close to you," Castiel frowned. "Are you...feeling okay?"

Dean sighed. "I'm fine, but...Sammy--" He glanced at his little brother and shook his head.

Castiel didn't really care if Sam wasn't okay, but he knew Dean would be mad if he knew that. Sighing, Castiel managed to add a little emotion to his voice. "What's wrong with Sam?"

Dean shook his head again. "I don't know, Cas."

"Hmm...Do you want me to move him?" Castiel asked. "I know how you like your personal space. I can move him to the back without ever touching him."

"Yes, please," Dean mumbled.

"Well..." Castiel started. "I might have to give him a gentle touch. Just on the forehead. Do you still want me to move him. He probably won't know that anything is going on."

Dean nodded. "Yes."

Castiel lightly touched Sam, causing him to move to the back seat. Sam moaned a little and repositioned himself, but he didn't wake.

"Thanks, Cas," Dean mumbled. "So...how about those wolves?" he asked, trying to make conversation.

"That elf friend of yours must have sent them there." He shook his head, sighing. "I told her not to interfere. That you and Sam could handle yourselves." He looked down to the floor of the Impala. "I do not like that elf."

"Why not? I think she is okay. It's not like she is evil. Do you not like her because she is not human?"

"No that is not it." Castiel looked out the window. "I don't care too much for humans, either. You are the only human that I can stand being around for long periods of time."

"Oh," Dean mumbled. "Right."

Castiel studied Dean. "Does that...upset you?"

Dean shrugged. "No."

Castiel sighed. "I must go. I still need to find God." He looked back at Sam before turning back to Dean. "Sam is about to wake." And then he was gone.

Sam jerked awake, spitting on the seat of the Impala. "No, get it out of me!" he cried, continuing to spit and thrash, kicking Dean's seat in the process.

Dean pulled the Impala to the side of the road and looked back at Sam. "Sam, you're okay, it was just a dream."

"No, it's not!" Sam cried spitting again. "It's in me, Dean! They made me drink demon blood again!"

"Sam, you didn't want it, did you?" Dean asked "By the looks of it, you didn't, and that's good enough for me." He shook his head. "Look, Sammy, you tried to not drink it, but you would have suffocated if you didn't swallow it."

Sam shook his head, biting his bottom lip. "No, I didn't want it." He looked up at Dean, tears in his eyes. "So, you don't hate me? You're not mad?"

Dean shook his head again. "No, I'm not mad," he said calmly.

Sam smiled. That made him happy. The last thing he wanted was for Dean to be mad at him for something that he had no control over. Suddenly, he realized that he was in the back seat. "Dean, why am I in the back?"

"I thought you would be more comfortable. More room to stretch out," he lied, not wanting to tell Sam that Castiel was there a few minutes ago.

"Oh," Sam said. "Well, I'm not tired anymore, so I'm going to move back up front." He opened the back door and climbed out, sitting in the passenger seat once more. Once Sam was in Dean took off again. Sam looked over at Dean as he drove. He looked exhausted. Sam sighed, shaking his head. "Dean, you look like shit. Do you want me to drive? You can take a nap?"

Dean glanced over at Sam. "Please?" he said, tiredly, pulling over he got out of the Impala and crawled into the back seat.

Sam scooted over to the other side of the car, slipping behind the wheel. He stepped on the gas and started driving again as he started to smile. Dean wasn't mad at him, and that was the best feeling in the world.

About two months later, Sam sat in the passenger seat of the Impala, staring out the window as Dean drove. There was a haunting in New York that needed to be dealt with as soon as possible. And Dean had made it very clear that they were gonna be the ones that dealt with said haunting. Dean glanced over at Sam, he seemed deep in thought. Finally, Sam looked over at Dean, knitting his eyebrows as he spoke. "Dude, do you think we can pull over somewhere and get some food? I'm starving."  
Nodding, Dean pulled into the first diner he saw. Dean got out and walked into the diner. Sam followed Dean inside, heading straight to the bathroom. Damn, he had been in the car with Dean for over eight hours and Dean hadn't even stopped for a bathroom break.

"How many?" the hostess asked.

"Two," Dean replied.

"Right this way." Dean followed the hostess to the table. "Your waitress will be here to serve you in a moment," she said handing Dean a menu and setting one across from him.

Sam walked out of the bathroom, looking around the diner until he found Dean. Once he found him, he walked over and took his seat opposite him at the table. Finally, he pulled out his laptop, opening it and logging on to the net. "All right, Dean, so there's certain websites on here that talk about all of the victims in the past two weeks."  
He shifted in his seat. pushing the laptop so Dean could see it better. "This is a pretty nasty succubus, Dean. There are 20 different men affected already and it's only been two weeks. Are you sure you want to go after this thing?"

Dean nodded. "Hell yeah, since when have we backed down from a hunt?"

"May I get you something to drink?" the waitress asked.

"Pepsi," Dean replied, still looking at the laptop screen.

Sam frowned at Dean. "I'll just have water," he replied, looking at Dean instead of the waitress. "I know we've never backed down, Dean, but this is a succubus. A nasty one at that. And we all know you have trouble keeping it in your pants."

Dean glared at him "Bitch," he mumbled.

Sam chuckled. shaking his head slightly. "Jerk," he replied, smiling again. It was nice to just be able to get back to basics, even if Lucifer was still on the loose.

"Are you ready to order?" the waitress asked, setting their drinks down.

Sam smacked his lips together and answered, "Yeah, I'll have the garden salad. Ranch dressing, please." Still, he didn't look up at their waitress. He would leave the ogling to Dean. He was good at that.

"And you?" she asked, turning to Dean.

"Cheese burger and fries," Dean answered.

Sam looked over at Dean and laughed. "Dude, I hope you get fat. All you ever eat is cheeseburgers and fries." He looked back at the computer screen. "Just once I think you should order a salad. Or at least try that tofu burger you never got at the diner last year."

The waitress chuckled a little. "What are you laughing a--holy crap!" Dean exclaimed, looking up at the waitress.

Sam rolled his eyes, figuring Dean had just noticed how hot the waitress was. "Dean, could you not--" His breath caught in his throat when he realized who the waitress was.. "F-Flare?"

Flare bit her bottom lip. "Um, h-hi, Sammy. Hi, Dean."

Dean started to laugh. "You're a waitress?"

"Shut up Dean, you have no idea how hard this damn job is," Flare ordered.

Sam couldn't say anything. He was in shock. Flare was here, and he was seeing her. After two months of not seeing nor talking to her. Damn, this was hard. And extremely awkward. Calm down, Sammy, just let Dean talk to her, and don't make eye contact.

Flare looked at the ground, and shook her head. "W-Well I'll go and put your order in," she mumbled, walking away.

"Dude, why didn't you say anything?" Dean pushed.

Sam looked at Dean and frowned. "Shut up, man," he said, shaking his head and turning his attention back to the computer screen. "All right, so...I think we should go to the last victim's house and see what we can find there. Maybe talk to his wife?"

"Yeah, I guess," he mumbled, shaking his head. "Sam, look, I know you have been staying up half the night looking at that necklace," he said, ticking his gaze to the necklace that was around his brother's neck. "I know you have been missing her, so all I'm saying is talk to her."

Sam put his hand over the necklace and a small smile pulled to his lips. Yeah, he had been looking at it half the night. So what? "No, Dean," he said, his voice firm; final. "Now, can we get our heads back in the case, please?" Dean nodded.

Flare walked back over and placed the food down on the table. Again, Sam kept his gaze averted and he wouldn't talk to Flare. He began typing things into the search box on his laptop, trying to find out where the last victim lived so they could go check it out. He was determined to close this case within the day and get the hell out of New York as fast as he could. He didn't have the strength to stay here when Flare was here. He didn't have time to be in a relationship right now. And honestly, he didn't think he and Flare were supposed to be together right now.

Dean started eating his burger. "So, did you find out where he lives?"

"Yeah," Sam replied, poking at his salad with his fork. "Um, he lives about ten minutes away from here in that apartment complex we saw." Sam poked at a piece of lettuce on his plate, hating the fact that he didn't want to eat it. "I think we should hurry up and go."

"Aw, but I'm eating," Dean whined.

Sam looked at Dean and frowned...again. "Well, hurry up and eat. I'll meet you in the car."

Dean took another bite of the burger and nodded.

"How is your food," she winced, "Sir?"

"Dude, Flare, seriously? You're going to call me 'Sir'?"

Flare looked at her feet. "I have to. Part of the damn job." She sighed. "Man, I hate it here."

"So then quit," Dean said, looking at her as though she was dumb or something. "Hello, easy answer there."

Flare shook her head and sat down across from him. "I need the money." She sighed again. "Sorry for leaving you guys." When she looked at Dean again, her eyes were full of regret. "How have you been doing?"

Sam sat in the Impala searching the web for anything that might take his mind off Flare. Of all the diners in New York, Dean had to take them to this particular one. He had done this on purpose. Sam didn't know how yet, but he knew Dean had something to do with this. He was still researching for anything that might help him with the case at hand. Unconsciously, his hand went to the necklace he wore, a frown pulling to his lips. He looked down at the piece of jewelry given to him by Flare, his frown deepening. Slowly, he pulled it over his head, holding it in his hand for a few more seconds before laying it in his duffel. Now, he wouldn't be up half the night and maybe he could get some sleep. Having that necklace just reminded him of the life he used to have, before all of this Lucifer shit went down. Now, he didn't want to remember that life. It was too painful.

"I've been fine. Except that with Sam around, I've been getting totally cock blocked." He rolled his eyes.. "Yeah, can you believe it? Sam gets more girls than I do these days, which is crap. People keep thinking that Sam and I are a couple, and if that doesn't scare away the ladies, I don't know what does." He shuddered at the thought of him and Sam being an item...Gross.  
Flare smiled, sitting back as she mumbled, "Man, I miss you guys. Life has been too boring. :ast hunt I was on was...six weeks ago."  
Dean scoffed. "Lucky you. Sammy and I have been on hunts nonstop. His idea." He looked at his watch. "damn, that reminds me, I should be out there right now. Sam and I have a succubus on our hands."

"Oh...okay, but before you leave can I speak to Sam?" Dean looked at his watch again before he nodded. Flare smiled. "Thanks, Dean," she said before standing and walking out of the diner. She walked over to the Impala and knocked on the window.

Sam looked at the window, seeing Flare. He rolled his eyes and sighed, winding the window down. "Yeah?" he asked, not looking at her. Instead, he was glaring at Dean. Asshole set him up. He was so getting back at him for this later. Oh, yeah, when Dean was attacked and about to have sex with the succubus, Sam wasn't going to get his ass out of that mess. Nah. Let him save himself. Prick.

Flare sighed. "All I wanted to say was that I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I just left without saying a word. I'm sorry that I didn't call and talk to you for two months. And I'm sorry for bugging you." She shook her head and started to walk away, only to hear her name called by Sam.

Sam reached back into his duffel, pulling out her necklace. "Here, you can have this back." He handed her the necklace. "I can't keep it anymore. It's too much of a reminder of who I was and what my life was like before this." He pulled his hand back into the car, winding up the window again. Before it was past his lips, he whispered, "I'm sorry."

Flare looked at the necklace, biting her bottom lip, trying not to cry. She walked back into the diner, but not before glancing back at Sam, her cheeks stained with tears. Quickly, she pushed open the doors and walked into the bathroom.


End file.
